The Perfect Plan
by MidnightYawns
Summary: Naruto had to break up his one year relationship with Sakura over fear of losing her to his enemies. He doesn't tell her the real reason but enough to send her away. Seeing her best friend all sad, Ino decides on a "perfect" plan to bring these idiots back together with the help of Konoha. Au-ish, early shippuden. NaruSaku and other couples
1. Trying to Forget

**This is an AU-ish thing of early Shippuden where the Uchiha massacre never happened, so Itachi is here along with Sasuke. So, I think if none of that happened, Sasuke isn't such a prick, right? Also, Sasuke was given "private" lessons, so team 7 is Kakashi, Sai, Sakura, and Naruto.**

 **Also, after a year that Naruto came back from training, the Akatsuki go and kidnap Gaara.**

CH1: Trying to Forget

* * *

 _"Do you like it, Sakura?" Naruto asked her eagerly as he watched her reaction. He had given her a necklace that took him months to buy it for her. He had saved from every mission he did, just to buy her this._

 _Sakura's eyes grew wide as she held it out. The sun shining on it made it look even more beautiful. Naruto had it made especially for her, having her family symbol on it._

 _"It's... It's so beautiful, Naruto!" Sakura gasped as her eyes admired it._

 _Naruto grinned happily and satisfied that she liked it, "Since it's been a year that we started dating... I thought I would give you something."_

 _"Thank you..." She smiled at him as he helped her put it on._

 _They both admired the necklace and Sakura touched it with her fingers, "I also got you something... It isn't much so..."_

 _Next to her was a bag and she handed it to him, "Here."_

 _As Naruto took the bag and opened it to see a sweater with his face drawn on it silly._

 _"Hinata helped me with the knitting, it took some time. And since it's going to get cold soon, I thought you would like it." She said looking at his reaction, a bit scared he would laugh at it._

 _Naruto grinned happily, "I would never have guessed you would give me this…! I was half expecting some doctor stuff!"_

 _Sakura laughed, "Baka! Just because I work at the hospital, doesn't mean I will give you doctor supplies. But when I'm head doctor, you'll see."_

 _Giving a warm smile, Naruto said, "Thank you, Sakura…"_

* * *

Sakura sighed as she remembered that day. She looked out the window of the hospital and watched some kids walk by below. It was already evening and the sun was slowly setting.

 _'I was so happy back then...'_ she thought as she slowly turned around, trying to forget what happened four months ago.

She was the head doctor, under Tsunade that is, of the hospital. There was a lot going on with the Akatsuki taking jinchūrikis, making chaos in the hospital with injured people.

So the hospital wasn't exactly at peace.

Many shinobi would be very injured coming from trying to get the Akatsuki away or trying to track them down.

The pink haired girl looked at her papers while walking towards her office. She stopped and sighed once again. That silly blonde guy just couldn't escape her thoughts.

"Hey! Sakura!" Ino called from behind a bit annoyed.

Sakura turned around, confused, "Yes? What is it, Ino?"

Ino placed her hands on her hips and raised an eyebrow at her, "Are you seriously still thinking of him? It's been 4 months! We are in the middle of some Akatsuki threat here!"

Sakura forced a smile, "Oh shut up, Ino! I was just thinking of how we are going to fit more people here!"

That was obviously a lie.

Ino rolled her eyes, "Seriously though, do you think I'm stupid? I've known you since we were little kids... I know how you feel."

Ino slowly shook her head while thinking, ' _Oh, Sakura…!'_

Sakura breathed and turned around, "Let's not talk about this... We have work to do."

With that, Sakura walked away, forgetting why Ino called her in the first place.

Ino watched her friend disappear into a room.

 _'That Sakura! This has got to end. She wasn't like this at all before Naruto broke it up... What an idiot he is...!'_

Without another thought, she went on to ask another nurse for what she originally came for.

* * *

Checking on her papers again, Sakura walked up to the patient room number 478. Giving a knock at the door, Sakura then entered the patient's room and greeted him.

There was a man in his late 40s on the hospital bed with a bandaged leg and arm.

"Hello! I am Doctor Haruno. I will be checking your leg and arm now."

The man nodded as Sakura walked up to him to check his leg injury. It was pretty deep and needed quite a few stitches. She then asked him a few questions about his arm and then carefully checked it, making sure the arm wasn't healing inappropriately.

Nurses usually did this type of job, but they were all extremely busy, so Sakura did some filling up.

"Alright, both seem to be healing just fine... And pretty fast, too!" Sakura said a bit surprised.

The man smiled, "Yes, I have the ability to heal fast... "

Sakura grinned at him, but her memory went towards a grinning blonde idiot.

 _'...Naruto...'_ She thought sadly.

"If it starts to hurt, please inform us." Sakura said a she jotted down some notes onto her clipboard.

"I will." The patient answered along with a nod.

Excusing herself, Sakura stepped out, with Naruto's imagine still in her head.

She hit her head with her hand and whispered, "No... You have to forget about him. He... He didn't want you in his life anymore..."

* * *

On the other side of Konoha, was a blonde ninja sitting at Ichiraku's.

He ate his ramen slowly and was in thought. It was so out of character for him to be so quiet. What had happened about four months ago still bothered him.

"Naruto...!" a voice said next to him. It was Shikamaru who had to accompany him into the eating supper with Naruto.

Naruto, got out of thought and then smiled at him, "Oh, right! What were you saying again?"

Shikamaru sighed, "You shouldn't have done that if you were going to keep on moping around afterwards."

Naruto knew exactly what he meant, but still looked away, "I had to do it. Why else would I say it?"

Shikamaru grabbed his shoulder, "No you didn't. Nothing would happen to her."

Naruto looked at him with confusion, "How would you know? You know how they are... And if they ever found out, she would be in extreme danger."

Shikamaru shook his head a little. He decided to drop it and move on. He hated how Naruto had ended up like this.

Only Shikamaru knew the real reason why Naruto had to break up with Sakura. He remembered the week before Naruto broke up with Sakura. He had come to Shikamaru, looking all worried.

 _"I can't do this anymore..." Naruto said as he looked at Shikamaru, filled with worry. He had told Shikamaru to meet him just outside of Konoha. It was already late and dark._

 _"What at you talking about? You just saved Gaara, what else is wrong?" Shikamaru asked as he kicked a small pebble with his foot._

 _Shaking his head, Naruto sighed, "I can't put her in danger. I couldn't bear to lose her...! What if the Akatsuki find out about my relationship with her? What if they somehow capture her to lure me in? What if they hurt her?"_

 _Shikamaru saw how worried Naruto looked and quickly said, "Calm down, Naruto... Everything's going to be ok. Sakura's strong, right? We'll be there to protect you both... You trust in your friends, right?"_

 _Naruto shook his head, "You... You don't understand. That's the reason why I'm afraid to lose her. She would give up her life to save mine... She would never tell the whereabouts of me or my weakness."_

 _Shikamaru tried to protest, but Naruto continued, "That is why I must break this up... I can't tell her the real reason, but enough so she can hate me."_

 _Giving a big sigh, Shikamaru slowly said, "You are really... Making this unnecessarily complicated. Just tell her the damn truth."_

 _Naruto turned around and ran his ringers through his hair, "I can't. She wouldn't understand, you know how stubborn she can be."_

 _The black haired friend waited for Naruto to say more. Naruto just turned back around, facing Shikamaru, "Anyways, I just… I just wanted at least let you to know. Just in case something weird happens or whatever…"_

The memory faded slowly in Shikamaru's mind.

 _'That was about four months ago...'_ thought Shikamaru as he was picking on his food.

"Anyways, Naruto..." Shikamaru began, trying to change the subject, "How was the mission?"

Naruto's face lit up immediately, "Oh, man, you should've been there! It was so funny what happened to Kaka-sensei! His face looked so stupid!"

He laughed loudly remembering his mission. Shikamaru smiled a bit, relieved to see his friend back… for now.

* * *

"Thank goodness my shift is almost over." Sakura yawned a bit to herself while stretching her arms a bit, while sitting in her office.

It was getting dark and all she wanted to do was to go home and sleep.

"Sakura, are you ready to go home?" Ino asked as she walked in her office.

Shaking her head, Sakura said, "No, I'm almost done with this paper work. I would ask you to go on, but looks like it's too dark for that."

Ino sighed and placed her hands on her hips, "I was gonna wait for you anyways. And I can kick anyone's ass."

"Then help me!" Sakura joked a bit.

Ino shrugged and walked over, "Ah, this stuff... I'll sort them out, ok?"

Nodding, Sakura agreed, "Thank you. I've been so tired lately..."

"Psht, that's because you work over time. Your real shift ended 2 hours ago."

"You know how many patients have come in recently..." Sakura sighed while signing a document.

Raising her eyebrows, Ino gave a nod, "Yes, you are right… Especially you, since you're like right under Tsunade."

They stayed up for about an hour or so of Ino suddenly talking of her day.

"She told me to put on sea salt water thingy on my hair... Like, I'm not sure how that will help me? What do you think? I think it's kind of dumb."

Signing the last document, Sakura responded, "Go on ahead and do it... If she says she's the expert then do it."

Smirking, Ino said, "Ok then, I'll do it to your hair to see if it really works."

Sakura's eyes grew wide and she laughed, "No, don't do it! I was kidding; it makes your hair extremely dry."

"How would you know?" Ino asked while leaning forward a bit.

Rolling her eyes, Sakura said, "The beach? I'm pretty sure that has sea salt... and you know how ugly our hair came out."

After debating a bit, they both decided to go home. As they walked out of the hospital, Ino eagerly said, "Sakura! Come sleep over at my place. I've got this new recipe I really want you to try. It's so good, I can't believe I forgot to tell you!"

"Recipe? What are you, a suburban mom?" Sakura joked.

Ino frowned, "No, but its good. That's what matters. And anyone can like cooking!"

Grabbing Sakura's hand, Ino dragged her onwards.

It was dark outside, and barely anyone on the streets.

"Hold up." Sakura said as they both walked normally, "I have some of my clothes over at your house, right?"

"Hm? Yes, you left some shorts and shirts at my place… you keep forgetting to get them!" Ino then giggled, "Oh well, they fit me, so I wear them sometimes."

Sakura gasped, "Ino! You better not lose any of my clothes!"

They both laughed as they decided not to stop by at Sakura's house for any clothes.

Ino kept talking and Sakura listened carefully. As they made a turn, both of them bumped into some people.

"Hey!" Ino's voice sounded annoyed. She couldn't see who it was until they spoke.

"Calm down, Ino, it's just us..." Skiamaru said as he and Naruto stepped closer to the street light.

Ino's face lit up, "Ah, Shikamaru! Haven't seen you in a while."

Sakura awkwardly waited next to Ino. She looked at Naruto, who avoided eye contact with her.

But Sakura took a deep breath and smiled, "Shikamaru! It's been a while, hasn't it?"

Shikamaru shrugged, "I guess so. So, how's work at the hospital?"

Ino spoke, "Hard, but pretty good. Sakura's been working very hard, now that she's been named top doctor! Under Tsunade that is."

Naruto's eyes looked up towards Sakura.

' _She finally made it…!'_ Naruto thought happily. He wanted to hug her and congratulate her. But he knew he couldn't.

He wanted to hold her. He wanted to be the first to know of these news, the dream of Sakura to be the best doctor.

But slowly and lowly, he spoke, "Congrats, Sakura..."

Sakura looked at him hurt, but still managed to say something, "Um, thanks."

 _'He didn't call me Sakura-chan...'_ She thought sad, but she had to get used to this. They barely talked ever since 4 months ago.

Ino and Shikamaru both looked at each other and sighed.

 _'Ok this ends now.'_ they both thought, _'Alright, maybe after some planning, though_.'

Not standing being near them anymore Sakura spoke loudly, "Oh! Look at the time! Ino, if we don't get there, we'll be too tired to see your new recipe."

Sakura gave a smile to both Naruto and Shikamaru, "It's been real nice, so goodnight you guys...!"

Without another word, Sakura grabbed Ino and headed out.

Shikamaru then turned to Naruto, "You must have made her angry..."

Naruto gave an innocent confused face, "What'd I do!?"

Giving him a pat on the shoulder, Shikamaru said "One day you'll understand women. I mean I don't fully but... One day we both will."

The blonde guy placed his hands behind his head, "I'm going home now. Goodnight, Shikamaru."

Giving a nod, Shikamaru waved, "Alright. Goodnight."

* * *

 **Chapters are def going to be much longer. I'm done with this story in my laptop, but just need time to edit it. Anyways, I hope you enjoyed it! The more feedback of how much you guys liked it, it will make me want to upload faster lol… I've tried to make sure there aren't any mistakes, but if you see some, please excuse!**


	2. The Light is On

Ch 2: The Light is On

* * *

"Ino, this is so good!" Sakura chewed onto her piece of cake more. It felt like heaven in her mouth.

They were both at Ino's place in the kitchen eating what Ino had made. On the way, both did not say a word until they reached Ino's place.

Ino looked at Sakura satisfied, "Took some good damn times, but worth it by your expression."

Sakura twirled around Ino while chewing happily, "So good!"

Slowly placing down the tray Ino was holding, she said, "So... I see you and Naruto aren't in, let's say, good terms yet."

Sakura stopped twirling and gave a huge gulp. She wiped her mouth with a napkin and cleared her throat, "No, I... I mean, we are, sort of..."

Ino looked at her worriedly and said, "Sakura, you never really told me how you two broke up. I decided to let it go, because I knew you were too hurt to talk about it. But now, I think I should know. I could help you!"

Sakura shook her head, "No, there's nothing anyone can do. So, what's the point in me telling you? I'll end up looking stupid and... Besides! I already told you!"

Ino crossed her arms, "Yea, barely… You didn't want to talk about it anymore…"

Sakura took a deep breath and walked past Ino, "Besides, it's getting late. I have to go to sleep now."

Ino decided not to push it anymore. In reality, Ino already knew the reason why they broke up. Shikamaru had told her after Ino insisted. She only knew the reason Sakura knew, not the real reason, like Shikamaru and Naruto.

At first, Ino was very angry with Naruto, but as she went to kick his ass, she saw him also devastated. So she thought there might have been more to it.

But Shikamaru asked her not to get into their business and to leave things alone.

 _ **"Mind your own business, Ino..." Shkamaru sighed. Since Sakura didn't want to say details, Ino was determined to find out, so she went to the person who told her first, Shikamaru.**_

 _ **"This IS my business! Sakura's my friend and I want to help!" Ino frowned while crossing her arms.**_

 _ **"Just leave them be... It's more complicated than what anyone thinks." He said while turning around.**_

With Shikamaru saying that, she really wanted to know what was going on.

But as the months went by, she let it go. Sakura, wasn't completely over it, so it was driving Ino insane.

"I'll find out, Sakura... What really did happen." Ino whispered to herself while walking up at Sakura's door.

Giving a knock at her door, Ino asked, "Hey, want to see a movie?"

After a while, Sakura said from inside, "Nah... It's alright. It's late and I need to work a lot tomorrow. I'll see you in the morning. Goodnight."

Ino gave a frustrated sigh, "You always work! When will you take a break?"

"When people stop getting hurt!" Sakura shouted from her bed.

Deciding to leave her alone, Ino went on into the living room and watch some TV.

' _Sakura, Sakura, Sakura…!'_ The pale blonde shook her head.

She grabbed the remote control and flipped through the channels, bored.

 ** _"I just want my friend to be with the guy she loves!"_** the girl on TV said in an over exaggerated voice.

Ino's eyes went wide as she saw the show.

"Yea!" Ino said to the television.

The show was about some girl's friend making some "makeup" dates for her friend who was "heartbroken".

Ino grinned evilly and said, "That's right... I'll make them get back together! No matter what... I'll make those two losers happy again!"

" _ **WHAT WILL HAPPEN NEXT?!** " _The announcer said as they zoomed in and out repeatedly at the "heartbroken" girl's face.

* * *

Sakura lay on her bed with her hand on her forehead. She looked at the ceiling and gave a huge sigh.

Around this time, 4 months ago, is when her heart was broken, shattered to tiny pieces. That was why she was so sad today. And when she just _had_ to bump into him today… She felt like crying there.

Sakura closed her eyes and her mind drifted to 4 months ago, trying to hold back the tears.

She had been waiting for him in his messy apartment at night. He had asked her to meet her there because he had something important to say.

 _"Where is he?" Sakura asked herself while looking at the clock._

 _She was by herself waiting for him. But soon the front door opened and in came Naruto who was tired looking._

 _"Yo, Naruto! Are you ok?" Sakura asked while walking up to him._

 _He looked at her differently and sighed, "Yes. I'm fine."_

 _His tone was a bit harsh, but she still grabbed his shoulder, "Are you sure? I can make you something so you can feel better."_

 _She walked to his kitchen and said out, "I may not be that good with this... Kitchen stuff... But I'll see what I can do."_

 _Naruto watched her with a painful look for a second, and then shook his head._

 _"I said I'm alright!" he frowned while walking up to her, "You don't have to touch everything of mine."_

 _Sakura glared at him, "What the hell is wrong with you? Just because you have a shitty day, doesn't mean you have to be an ass to everyone!"_

 _She crossed her arms in front of her chest and leaned forward towards him, "Besides, you never act this way, even if you do have a shitty day! And what did you want to talk about…"_

 _Naruto hesitated a lot. He tried to look angry, but couldn't. He couldn't be angry at her._

 _"Well?" Sakura asked, still annoyed from what happened a minute ago._

 _He turned around, not wanting to see her face and took a deep breath._

 _"We... We need to break up."_

 _Naruto held his breath as his mind wanted to regret saying that line._

 _Sakura stood still with wide eyes and her heart was racing._

 _She shook her head and whispered, "Why...? I thought everything was going great...!"_

 _'At least tell her the truth why...!_ _' Shikamaru's voice rang inside Naruto's head._

 _But Naruto took a deep breath and said, "Because...! I um, just don't L... L... don't love you anymore."_

 _Sakura's throat got tight and her eyesight was getting blurry. She blinked a few times, letting the tears fall, "What? But... How can you not just love me anymore? I... Was just starting to love you!"_

 _Naruto covered his eyes with one hand and said, "Sakura... Just go. I don't want to see you anymore."_

 _Frowning Sakura stomped her foot, "No! Not until you really give me a reason why! You can't suddenly just stop loving me after all these years!"_

 _Still not wanting to see her face, Naruto yelled, "I never loved you in the first place! It was just some stupid childish crush! Now, leave, Sakura...! I don't want to be near you ever again."_

 _Sakura held her breath and then swallowed hard. Her eyes glared the back of his blonde hair._

 _She wanted to beat him up for wasting her time, for just wanting to throw her away._

 _But at the same time, she felt like the world had fallen on her and that there was no hope for her to survive._

 _Her mind was going all over the place, but she couldn't move._

 _After a while, Sakura slowly started to walk toward the door._

 _She opened it and was stepping out when she said in a low angry voice, "I hope you're happy now that I'm gone. Maybe then, you will find your... 'tru luv', you jerk."_

 _With that she slammed the door hard and walked away._

 _As she made it far away enough, Sakura broke down crying._

 _She was crying down the empty lonely streets of Konoha._

 _Never before had she felt this hurt over anyone. She covered her eyes while shaking her head_.

 _Meanwhile with Naruto, the part Sakura didn't see, he was sitting on his bed covering his face with his pillow._

 _"It's for your own good, Sakura..." he kept repeating to himself. His chest ached as he cried some more._

 _He hated those Akatsuki ruining his relationship with the only person he truly ever loved._

 _"When all of this is over... I'll explain everything, Sakura..." he said to himself, "but if you're happy with someone else by then, I won't bother you."_

 _Sakura finally made it home and she went to clean her face. She couldn't sleep that night. She couldn't do anything at all._

 _All she did was cry for how stupid she had been for thinking he would love her. She felt like she would be alone forever now. She felt like someone had stabbed her in the back, then push her off a cliff._

" _I'm so stupid…!" Sakura cried, "I thought… I thought he really did care about me…!"_

 _For the next four months, Sakura avoided Natuto as much as possible. Every time she would get a mission with him, she would request a switch with anyone._

 _They barely talked; the only way was when it was about mission papers or passing a message from Tsunade._

 _Throughout all those four months, Sakura felt miserable, trying hard to look forward to her career and friends. But Naruto's memory would always make her wish he would be different._

 _Naruto felt guilty about everything during those months. But he kept reminding himself, that it was her safety that came first._

 _Sakura didn't know of Naruto's true intensions, she thought he was just some asshole that faked his kindness towards her._

The sad pink haired girl turned to her side and closed her eyes again to try and get some rest.

"I'm going to forget you for sure, Uzumaki..." Sakura whispered, "Baka... It'll be hard, but you're not worth it anymore. No more tears from me..."

With that she slowly tried to sleep. Even though tears threatened to escape her eyes, she wiped them off, not wanting to give in. But it was always like this almost every night. She would feel like crying… sometimes she would cry, other times she would try to distract her mind from him.

Meanwhile with Ino, she was laughing evilly in the living room while random lightning flashed in the background with evil organ music.

"Yes!" Ino grinned while writing down something with Sakura's hello kitty pen, "Perfect, perfect, perfect I tell you!"

Sakura tried to sleep, but with Ino's random laugh, she groaned while standing up and wiping her face with her shirt.

"Shut the hell up, Ino!" Sakura yelled angrily while slamming her door.

Ino cringed a bit and whispered back, "Sorry, Sakura!"

Giving herself a smirk, Ino read her paper that had big bold letters saying: **FALL IN LUV PLAN**

"All I need now is Choji, Shikamaru, and all of Konoha." Ino smiled.

With that, she placed the paper safely away in one of the drawers in her room.

A yawn escaped her mouth as she stretched out her arms, "Guess it's time for me to sleep..."

Without another thought, Ino headed towards her soft bed and decided to rest.

* * *

Sakura was bright and early ready to go out towards the hospital.

She headed towards the bathroom to tie her hair up in a ponytail, "Ah, today is going to be a great day!"

Ino walked in and yawned, "Sakura? It's like 5 in the morning! You don't get in until 6:30..."

Sakura smiled at her and said, "No, it's perfect to... Get up!"

 _'Oh no...'_ Sakura thought _, 'Please don't think of him, Sakura! I have to be strong! I will not think of him!'_

Checking herself in the mirror once again, she walked past Ino and into the kitchen.

Ino stayed in the bathroom, deciding to also get ready.

Sakura gave a small yawn as she got out some milk from the fridge.

Ino was still in the bathroom getting ready, so Sakura was all alone in the kitchen.

Grabbing the cereal box, Sakura poured herself some in a bowl.

 _'Alright, Sakura...!'_ she thought with a determined face _'Concentrate on patients today more than ever...! Forget about him, already! You... You can do it, Sakura...!'_

Giving herself a nod, Sakura poured in milk to her bowl filled with cereal.

Meanwhile, Ino quickly went towards her room and searched for her "secret plan" paper.

"Hm..." Ino thought out loud, "The guys get up a bit later..."

Looking at her clock, Ino sighed, "We still have like so much time left before the shift... Might as well go with her."

Quickly changing to her uniform, Ino then headed towards the kitchen to Sakura.

Walking in, Sakura slowly chewed her food. She did not look as happy as when she got up.

Ino crossed her arms thinking _'Maybe now she'll see how dumb it is getting up way earlier than expected.'_

The pink haired girl looked up and swallowed, "Oh, ready already, Ino?"

Nodding, Ino said, "Yes, I might as well go with you this early."

As Ino went to search something to eat, Sakura was already done and said, "I'll go change now, be right back.

Finally grabbing some toast and jam, Ino sat down while thinking _, 'Hmm... How do I get those two to randomly_ _**bump**_ _into each other?'_

After a while, Sakura came out all ready to go, while still checking herself in the mirror of Ino's living room.

"Just gonna grab my purse..." Sakura mumbled as she went to her room.

Ino nodded while looking out her window. It was still pretty dark out, but she squinted to see who was also up walking below.

Her eyes grew wide as she realized it was Naruto.

With a hurry, Ino gulped and drank her juice.

"Sakura!" Ino ran towards her room and retrieved her purse, "Let's go now! Like, today!"

Sakura got out of her room and asked, "What about my clothes that I left before?"

Shaking her head, Ino grabbed Sakura's arm and said, "Later! We can't be _LATE_ to the hospital! People need us!"

A bit taken back to Ino's sudden excitement for work, Sakura gave a slow nod, "Alright...?"

Both girls quickly went out, while Ino locked her door as fast as she could.

"I know a short cut!" Ino yelled quickly.

Making Sakura run, Ino ran in front of her, so that they could "bump" into Naruto.

"Ino wait!" Sakura breathed in, "Why in such a hurry!?"

But Ino ignored her as she finally saw Naruto slowly walking.

Making a turn to appear in front of him, Ino stopped right before bumping into Naruto.

Sakura caught up breathing fast, "Damn it Ino! Don't make me run this fast in the morning! Now I'll smell like sweat!"

Naruto looked up at both girls. Ino smiled, "Oh, _NARUTO_!? What a coincidence! Sakura and I just had to _RANDOMLY_ bump into you!"

She playfully elbowed Sakura while giving her a smirk, "Hm, Sakura?"

Sakura then looked a bit sad, but took a deep breath, "Good morning, Naruto..."

Naruto looked at her, with also being a bit sad, "Yea... Good morning, Sakura..."

Ino looked at both of them and thought worriedly _, 'Crap! I might be making things awkward because I'm here...'_

Giving a gasp, Ino said suddenly, "Oh no! I forgot something extremely important at home!"

Sakura's eyes grew wide and reached out for her friend, "I'll go with you..!"

Shaking her head, Ino ran off yelling "I'll meet you at the hospital, Sakura! Later, Naruto!"

 _'She is so dead._ ' Sakura thought angrily.

Both Naruto and Sakura awkwardly stood there.

Sakura just couldn't stand being near him. She was afraid he would say something to hurt her again.

She slowly began, "I guess I should go now..."

Giving a nod, Naruto said, "Yea... Me too."

He turned around and went the opposite direction than Sakura.

 _'Don't you dare cry, Sakura!'_ Sakura thought as she took a deep breath.

Slowly walking towards the hospital, Sakura tried not to cry or think of him.

But pulling out a fist, Sakura said to herself, "I have to be strong!"

Unknown to her or Naruto, Ino was hiding behind some shop to spy on them.

"Damnit!" Ino frowned, "Part A failed miserably. Gonna need more help… once Choji and Shikamaru get their lazy asses up."

* * *

The day went by surprisingly normal up until lunch. Sakura acted as if nothing ever happened, and Ino didn't want to ask anything. Yes, Sakura was a bit annoyed with her at first, but decided to brush it off.

But before lunch, Ino had Choji and Shikamaru come to the hospital.

"Um, we are here to see Nurse Ino Yamanaka?" Choji asked the front office lady at the hospital.

Nodding, the front desk lady started to dial the phone.

Shikamaru gave a big sigh and placed his hands in his pockets, "What does Ino need now?"

Choji opened a bag of chips and shrugged, "Dunno, seemed important! What if something bad happened?"

The black haired boy shrugged, "I don't think so…"

Before anyone else could say anything, they heard Ino' s voice, "Hey guys!"

Turning around, both of them gave a small wave. Choji grinned, "Ino! What is it that was so important?"

Quickly Ino covered Choji's mouth and whispered, "Shut up, we have to talk somewhere private, you two."

Sweating nervously, they both agreed before she could mind control them.

Looking around suspiciously, Ino signaled them to follow her outside of the hospital.

' _What the hell is Ino doing…?'_ Both guys thought confused.

They soon made it to an area behind the hospital, away from anyone's hearing range.

Shikamaru looked around confused, "Why here?"

Ino sighed and said, "I'm on break now, guys… Also, I need your help."

"For what?" Asked Choji while finishing his chips.

Throwing her hands in the air she said, "So that Naruto and Sakura can get together, that's why!"

Shaking his head, Shikamaru turned around to leave, "I already told you… just leave them alone."

Choji didn't know what to do, so he just stayed in place.

But Ino grabbed Shikamaru's arm, "Oh, please, Shikamaru! Please! I'm tired of seeing both Naruto _and_ Sakura looking so miserable! They weren't like this!"

She stopped to see his reaction, but Shikamaru didn't move. So she continued, "I don't know what really was Naruto's reason… but whatever reason it was, is making both of them look extremely miserable! Please…"

Ino looked at Choji and whispered, "Please help me get our friends back…"

Choji nodded, "I guess you're right… I'll help you, Ino!"

Shikamaru knew Naruto's true reason was extremely stupid and was affecting him greatly. Giving a shrug and sigh, he nodded, "Alright. I'll help you. I won't tell you the real reason of Naruto, but with whatever else, I'll help."

Giving a squeal and huge grin, she hugged her teammates tightly, "Oh! Thanks you guys! You are the best!"

After the hug, Choji asked, "Alright… so, what's the first plan?"

Grinning evilly, Ino said, "I'll explain it now…"

Shikamaru looked up at the sky and said, " **To Kami** : why did I agree?"

* * *

After discussing the plan, Ino went inside to finish her work. And as always, the hospital was extremely busy with new injured people.

Soon, lunch time came around, and many switched shifts, so that the hospital wasn't completely without any attention.

"Sakura!" Ino called out while knocking at her office, "Yo, its lunch time already."

Sakura looked up from her desk and then to the clock. Her eyes grew wide, "Oh, shit! Ughh, I'll have to finish these things when I come back…"

Getting up, Sakura grabbed her purse and headed out with Ino right behind. As Ino looked out the window from the top of the hospital, Ino saw her teammates and gave them a thumbs up. They nodded and ran towards the village.

"So…!" Sakura smiled, "Where do you want to eat lunch? I'm so hungry right now…!"

Ino grinned, "I know this _perfect_ place! Oh, wait! I have to use the restroom."

Sakura nodded, "Yea, I have to use it, too."

' _Hopefully, this will give the guys enough time…!'_ Ino thought while entering the bathroom.

* * *

Meanwhile with Shikamaru and Choji, they ran towards the village center and then into the training grounds.

"We better hurry, Choji!" Shikamaru said as he looked behind him, seeing Choji run.

Giving a nod, Choji said, "So, we have to bring him here? How do you know if he's here?"

A small chuckle escaped Shikamaru as he said, "He always trains here with either Kakashi-sensei or Jiraiya-sensei!"

Without any other second to waste, they finally made it to the training grounds. Quickly looking around, they spotted Naruto with Jiraiya.

"Naruto!" Choji waved happily, "Hey!"

Naruto looked up and grinned widely while running towards them, "Hey guys, what's up?"

Jiraiya walked up to them and said, "Well, guess this means break time. Meet me here in about an hour, alright?"

Naruto looked at him suspiciously, "Hey! Aren't you going to join us to lunch?"

Nervously laughing, Jiraiya said, "Ah, sorry kiddos! But this guy needs to do some… research for now. HmHm!"

With that, Jiraiya disappeared in smoke.

Shaking his head, Naruto laughed, "Ah… Well, let's go. I know you came for lunch, right, Choji?"

Choji grinned, "You bet! I'm starving!"

Shikamaru then said quickly, "Ah! Choji and I know this _great_ place! It has all types of food! Let's go!"

Nodding, Naruto followed his friends back to the village.

* * *

Sakura asked once again where Ino wanted to go as they stepped out of the hospital.

Ino looked around and then back to Sakura, "Oh, I know this super wonderful place! You will love it!"

Nodding, Sakura followed Ino to this _"wonderful"_ place.

"Is it new?" Sakura asked as she pulled her hair out of her face and behind her ear.

"I guess you could say that…!" Ino smiled as they stepped in the busy streets of Konoha.

' _I told those guys to wait for me here! Where are they?!'_ Ino thought angrily while stopping.

"What's wrong?" Sakura asked her friend.

"Hold on…" Ino had to 'stop', "I need to get something in my purse."

Right then, Shikamaru, Choji, and Naruto had just turned a corner. Shikamaru was looking around for Ino and Choji "entertained" Naruto with questions.

Both Shikamaru and Ino saw each other and gave a nod.

All of a sudden, a wave of people came towards them, causing Sakura to lose Ino. But Ino knew that at around this time, this area became extremely full.

Getting out of the crowd, she pulled Choji and Shikamaru out of the crowd and said, "Great job, guys! Now, to watch…!"

Sakura and Naruto tried to push past people and looked around for their friends.

"Ino!" Sakura called out while pushing past this couple.

"Choji! Shikamaru!" Naruto shouted while looking around.

After a while of searching, Sakura pushed past someone and bumped right in front of Naruto. But she was about to trip, when he caught her just in time.

"S-Sakura!" He said to her.

Sakura looked at him and whispered, "Naruto?"

It was still crowded, so people pushed them together, making them very close to each other.

Sakura looked past Naruto's shoulder and said, "Over there!"

She pointed to an empty spot, "Let's go over there, Na- I mean…"

Naruto looked at her and then looked away, "I… I have to leave."

Frowning, Sakura crossed her arms, "Whatever. I forgot. Sorry."

With that, she pushed past him and out towards a clear place.

Ino and the rest watched in horror. Ino growled, "Damn it, Naruto! You big idiot!"

Shikamaru shook his head, "I guess it didn't work. You saw how Naruto was."

"What are we going to do now?" Choji asked to them.

Making a fist Ino said, "We have to try harder, that's what. But this will mean more help… this is way more complicated than what I originally thought."

Choji sighed and asked, "Hey, um… can we go to lunch now?"

* * *

 **Tired to edit this… but yea (please excuse)… Anyways, Naruto you dumb ninja… Thanks to all the supporters, those that reviewed (big hugs), and those that added this too their fave/alerts! Hopefully I'll be able to upload faster… My internet has been getting weird lately!**


	3. Wear Your Helmets, Kids

Ch 3 Wear Your Helmets, Kids

* * *

Two days had passed since Team Ten did their "plan" that had failed terribly. Ino tried her best to come up with more plans, but her "plan" wasn't well planned out.

She only had that one step in the whole paper.

It was already time for Ino to go home from work. It had been a long day at work and she was tired.

' _All I need is a nice hot bath…'_ She thought dreamily. Walking towards Sakura's office, she knocked on her friend's door.

Looking up, Sakura saw Ino and smiled, "Ah, going home? Well, I still need some more patients to check, so I'll see you tomorrow!"

"Oh, come on, Sakura!" Ino sighed, "Take a tiny break?"

Sakura shook her head and went towards a cabinet to take some papers out, "I don't think so. The hospital needs-"

"A lot of doctors in case of an emergency…" Ino rolled her eyes finishing Sakura's sentence.

Sakura gave a playful frown and sighed, "Well, that's the truth!"

Ino then said out, remembering, "Oh, that's right! You have the day off tomorrow, right?"

Nodding, Sakura watched her friend, "Yea, that's also another reason why I'm going to stay a bit late."

' _Perfect.'_ Ino smiled evilly, _'More chances to clean up this shit! But I'll need more people…'_

"Guess I should go, then." Ino went to hug her friend goodbye, who hugged back.

"Yes, see you tomorrow! I'll visit next morning, ok?"

Ino had to, unfortunately, work tomorrow, so it was going to be a bit hard for her to keep up with this plan.

Once again said goodbye and went to check out. As she made it outside, she saw the evening sun really hitting in. Shielding her eyes, she spotted TenTen walking past the hospital in front of Ino.

"TenTen!" Ino shouted and waved while running towards her.

' _Perfect! TenTen will help me with this…!'_ Ino finally reached the girl, who waved back at her happily.

"Ino!" TenTen grinned, "Been a while, hasn't it?"

"It has… Hey, mind if I ask you for a tiny favor?"

TenTen watched Ino carefully while slowly nodding, "Yea, depends, though."

Looking around, Ino signaled TenTen to follow her. None of them spoke during the time Ino was leading TenTen. They walked on top of a big hill, with the sun setting away from anyone hearing Ino speak.

As they reached the top, they could see almost anybody.

"What's up?" TenTen asked unsure of what was happening or why Ino was acting like this.

Wiping off some sweat, Ino mumbled, "Damn, I need to exercise more…"

TenTen heard this and smiled, "Ah! That's what this is about? You need help with training? Sure, I'll help!"

Shaking her head, Ino said quickly, "Oh, no! That's not it…! You have to promise not to tell anyone unless I give you permission to tell…"

Getting a bit anxious, TenTen nodded, "Alright. So, what is it?"

Taking a deep breath, Ino began explaining the plan. She explained everything and also about her suspicions.

"I think that… it's weird how Naruto can just… stop loving her!" Ino threw her hands up.

Nodding, TenTen agreed, "I know. We both, hell, everyone, knows that he was head over heels for her since forever. It's obvious a lie…"

Ino was in deep thought and then her eyes grew wide, "I know what we should do next!"

Listening carefully, TenTen asked, "What?"

Ino laughed evilly, "Yes! The perfect way to get any couple together…!"

"Well?"

Ino jumped around, "Jealously! We'll make Naruto jealous! Then, he'll come crawling back begging Sakura to come back to him!"

Ino could just imagine it in her head:

" _Oh, Sakura!" Imaginary Naruto would cry out in desperation in the cold rain, "Sakura, since you've gone out with an extremely hot ninja, I've gotten soooooo jealous! Whaaa!"_

" _Naruto?" Imaginary Sakura would say from her balcony, "I'm sorry… but I'm happy here with SuperHottie Ninja…!"_

" _Sakura, please!"_

 _Just then, SuperHottie Ninja would come in, looking all hot and in a deep voice, "Sakura, my love. What is going on?"_

 _Then, Imaginary Sakura would cry and yell, "I choose Naruto!"_

 _Soon, both will run towards the clearing sky in the sunset._

"And live happily ever after…" Ino said out loud finishing her daydream, "Yes! This is perfect."

TenTen did "The Office" look at a "camera" and then shook her head.

"Ino, I don't think that's how it works…" TenTen sighed.

Shaking her head a little, Ino agreed, "Ok, maybe not exactly like that, but you get the idea. Now… who is hot, single, and can agree to this?"

Gasping, Ino grinned, "Neji!"

TenTen blushed a bit and shook her head, "What?! No, no…. not him!"

Confused, Ino asked, "Why not? He's single… pretty good looking…"

Thinking desperately, TenTen thought, _'Tell her he'll never agree! Damn it, why do I have a crush on him!?'_

"He'll never agree…!" TenTen gave a nervous laugh while scratching the back of her head.

Observing her, Ino finally agree, "Yes… he could be a bit stubborn… But if there are no other ones available, we'll have to ask him."

' _Shit!'_ TenTen thought worriedly.

After a while of thinking, Ino snapped her fingers, "That's it! One of the Uchiha brothers!"

' _Thank you! Kami has given me another chance…!'_

"But where are they?" Ino asked, "Perhaps working…. That'll mean we will have to call someone else.

' _That means, Neji! Damnit, Kami!'_

Suddenly, they heard some loud motorcycle engines at the bottom of the hill.

TenTen looked around and gasped, "Look! It's Sasuke with Itachi!"

All of a sudden the song "Born to be Wild" by Steppenwolf, started to play in the background.

 _Get your motor runnin'_

 _Head out on the highway_

 _Lookin' for adventure_

 _And whatever comes our way_

Both Sasuke and Itachi were riding their cruiser motorcycles down a dirt road with shades on. Both of them had black jackets with no helmets (Don't do that, kids). Itachi's long luscious black hair flowed through the wind looking all badass.

 _Yeah, darlin'_

 _Gonna make it happen_

 _Take the world in a love embrace_

 _Fire all of your guns at once_

 _And explode into space_

Since Sasuke had duck butt hair, his didn't look as cool as Itachi's. Both Ino and TenTen watched in confusion and started to slowly make their way downhill.

 _I like smoke and lightnin'_

 _Heavy Metal thunder_

 _Racing in the wind_

 _And the feeling that I'm under_

Sasuke looked over at his brother and watched him in awe and thought, ' _Wow... Itachi is so cool...'_ Itachi looked at his brother and they both gave each other a nod.

 _Yeah, darlin'_

 _Gonna make it happen_

 _Take the world in a love embrace_

 _Fire all of your guns at once_

 _And explode into space_

Tenten glared at them from the side of the road and yelled, "We don't even have highways in Konoha! Where the hell are these guys getting so much road?!" But Ino stared in awe and confusion while thinking, _'Uchiha brothers can ride motorcycles?!'_

 _Like a true nature's child_

 _We were born_

 _Born to be wild_

 _We can climb so high_

 _I never wanna die_

All of a sudden, Itachi drove over a huge ramp that fell out of nowhere. He flew in the air doing some random air tricks while some random young people gasped and shrieked in excitement at all his badass.

 _Born to_ _be wild_

 _Born to be wi-_

Sasuke was too busy admiring his older brother, that he didn't see the big tree and crashed into it, sending him flying in the air, "AAAHHH!"

 _(Music all of a sudden stops)_

Ino and TenTen both gasped and yelled, "Sasuke!"

Sasuke landed with a big thud on the floor. Itachi's eyes grew wide as he landed smoothly and ran towards his little brother, "Sasuke!"

Groaning loudly, Sasuke sat up while holding his head, "Ahhh F-ck!"

' _I'll never be as cool as Itachi, now!'_ Sasuke thought angrily.

TenTen and Ino reached up to him, asking, "Are you ok?"

Before Sasuke could answer, Itachi came in, "Are you alright, Sasuke? Where does it hurt?"

Sighing, Sasuke stood up, "I'm alright. But the bike isn't."

They all turned their head to see the motorcycle all smashed up against the tree.

"That's it." Itachi sighed, "We wear helmets from now on."

TenTen watched them in shock, "You guys weren't wearing helmets?! That's dangerous!"

Itachi patted Sasuke's back, "He… wanted to be cool."

Blushing a bit, Sasuke looked away, "Shut up…"

Itachi then looked at Ino and asked, "Could you please check on him? You seem to be a nurse."

Ino blushed, _'H-He knows me?!'_

"Yea, ok!" Ino said as she used her chakra to see if anything was damaged on Sasuke. Suddenly, something hit her. She was still wearing her uniform of the hospital.

' _Damnit!'_ Ino sighed a bit. Suddenly remembering, she began, "Hey… is it alright if I ask you guys a favor?"

Itachi looked at her and said, "Yes, if we can help. Is there a crime that has been committed?"

Shaking her head, Ino said, "No… it's more like a personal favor…"

Sasuke rubbed his temples and said, "Sorry, I don't think I could be of any help. I'm not good with those…"

' _Yea…'_ Itachi thought while looking at his younger brother, _'Last time you sent an old lady to the hospital…'_

But Itachi smiled at Ino, "Well, I can help at least, hopefully.'

TenTen then blurted out, "We need you to make someone jealous!"

Itachi's eyes grew wide, "Me? You mean, pretend to go out with any of you two?"

Ino shook her head, "No, not us, but a friend of ours… do you know Sakura Haruno?"

Nodding, Itachi smiled, "Oh, yes, I know her."

' _Of course.'_ Ino thought a bit annoyed, but brushed it off.

"Well," TenTen said, "If you could, go out with her for a bit?"

Sasuke crossed his arms, "Doesn't she have a boyfriend? Naruto?"

Ino laughed nervously, "Well, you see… that is why."

The older Uchiha scratched the back of his head, "Aren't I a bit too old, though?"

TenTen eyed him a bit, "Only by a couple of years… not that much."

Shaking his head, he said, "I'm sorry… but I cannot. It will be illegal for me to do that, even if it is pretend. She is, I believe, around your age?"

Ino sighed, _'They just had to be part of the police…'_

TenTen nodded, "Yes, people would think wrong…"

They both looked at Sasuke, who realized and placed his hands up, "Sorry, no-can-do…. I would probably be too busy helping my brother. We sometimes have free time to spend together afterwards."

Both girls slowly agreed and Ino began, "Yes… well, thank you for still hearing us. We'll see you guys later."

It was already dark and even though Itachi offered to walk them home, they both refused.

"Damnit!" Ino sighed, "I was so close! Well, then, who?"

They were both walking down the streets, getting empty quickly.

"I don't know…" TenTen shrugged.

Ino turned her head to see TenTen, "By the way… where is your team?"

TenTen pointed behind her, "Oh, gone on a mission. They should be back tomorrow morning."

Thinking a bit more, Ino gave a small groan in thinking, "Myeh… we will have to ask Neji…"

TenTen's eyes grew wide, "Oh? Why not Sai?"

Shaking her head, Ino began, "No, Naruto knows Sakura and Sai would never happen. They were all on the same team, remember? We need someone who wasn't there on the team… Besides he's on an important mission as we speak."

TenTen then gasped, "What about Rock Lee? He's had this small crush on her! I'm sure he would be gladly to help… even if it breaks his heart."

Ino grinned, "Yes! With a little bit of makeover, he will look super-hot…! And Naruto will be filled up with jealousy! I will need your help tomorrow, if that is alright?"

TenTen nodded, "Of course! I'll wake up early to bring in Rock Lee to your house. There, he can get his makeover."

Ino agreed quickly, "Yea, and I'll convince Sakura to 'at least give him a chance'. But you explain everything to him on the way, ok?"

They continued to discuss the plan more into detail. After agreeing on the time and what to bring, Ino and TenTen went home to prepare.

Finally arriving to her house, Ino went to put her things away in her room. She got out some clothes and towel to take a nice hot bath.

As she sat in her bath, Ino thought out loud, "How am I going to tell Sakura? I have to be smart to say it… she is still heartbroken…"

She lowered herself in the bubbles and blew some of her own bubbles underwater.

"Ah… I have to tell Shikamaru and Choji to lure in Naruto in the scene…"

Ino grinned at herself as she anxiously waited for the morning to come. Getting out of the nice hot bath she just had, Ino then changed into pajamas.

Before going to sleep, she wrote down some more details and then prepared her makeup for Rock Lee.

"Hope this works…!"

* * *

 **Ugh, soooo sorry I couldn't upload earlier. I totally forgot to mention that I would be away on a mini vacation! I couldn't bring my laptop… (it was a fun trip tho). But yea, next chap will be up on Saturday (I'm seeing if I can add some more stuff to the chap maybe) hopefully my internet won't be jacked up. And I totally forgot how short this chapter was… sorry! Next is longer. Anyways, thanks for all the support! You are all super rad…!**


	4. Shoujo Male Protagonists Tho

CH4 Shoujo Male Protagonists Tho

* * *

The next morning came in quick. It was actually still dawn, 5:30 AM. TenTen was bright and early waiting at the gates. She squint her eyes for her teammates.

"Where are they…?" She whispered to herself as she continued to look. Then, from afar, she could see three little figures slowly making their way back to the village.

Giving a small gasp, TenTen grinned excitedly while running towards them, waving.

"Hey! You guys!" She waved her arm around.

Neji looked up and gave a small smile. He then turned his head to Rock Lee, who was waving back, "TenTen seems happy to see us…!"

He soon, waved too. Rock Lee nodded, "Yes… this mission was a bit hard, but thankfully Yamato-sensei was with us."

Yamato gave a small smile, "Yes… It's also a good thing we all did our job right."

Before they knew it, TenTen had already caught up to them, panting a bit, "Ah, it's so good to see you, Rock Lee!"

Neji's eyes grew wide a bit, he had been taken back. ' _Is she mad at me..?'_

She then turned to Yamato and Neji, giving a small nod, "Glad you all made it safe, too."

Turning her head to face Rock Lee, she said, "Come on, Lee! There's something important that you need to know…!"

Without him saying anything else, TenTen grabbed Rock Lee's arm and both ran back to the village.

Neji stood there with confusion and wide eyed, "W…What?"

Yamato gave a chuckle and continued to walk, "What's the matter, Neji? You seem… bothered."

Shaking his head, Neji responded, "No… Nothing. Guess we have to turn in the report without Lee…"

' _What the hell was that about…?'_ Neji shook his head, trying to concentrate.

"Let's go, Yamato-sensei."

"Gah! TenTen! What's going on?" Lee said in total confusion. They did not stop running, not even when they got in the village.

"Hold on, we are almost there!" TenTen said as she reached to Ino's place.

Inside, Ino had just finished talking to Sakura over the phone, "Alright. I'll see you later, then, bye! And sorry for waking you up so early!"

After she hung up, her doorbell rang. Excitedly, she went to open the door to reveal TenTen with a very confused Rock Lee.

"Yes! You made it!" Ino smiled as she let them in.

"Oh, Ino, please tell me what is happening!" Lee asked her.

Ino then walked around him, checking him out carefully. She needed a place to start.

"I have to get to work soon… So, I'll see what I can do…" Ino said as she signaled Lee to a seat.

Before Lee could protest, Ino got to work on his face.

"Wait, Ino!" TenTen said, "Shouldn't you ask him, first?"

Giving a nervous laugh, Ino said, "Oh… right! Lee!"

Rock Lee looked up, "Yes? What's going on?"

Grabbing her blush brush, Ino waved it around a bit, "We need to ask you this huge favor… Would you go out with Sakura?"

Lee's eyes grew wide and gave a big grin, "M-Me? Hell yea I will! Finally, Sakura and I… together!"

He cried tears of joy while jumping up and down, but then suddenly stopped, "But wait! What if Naruto sees us…? He'll get mad… and I won't feel so good… Like stealing his girlfriend."

Shaking her head, Ino explained, "No, that's the whole point! You won't go out for real… just pretend! I'll convince Sakura, and when Naruto sees you… he'll want Sakura back! But don't you dare tell Sakura or anyone else!"

Lee gave a sad smile and a shrug, "Oh… so, that's it."

TenTen suddenly felt bad for her friend, "Don't worry, Lee… maybe she really will give you a chance! We are going to have you a makeover!"

Lee then covered his thick eyebrows, "Not the eyebrows!"

Grinning evilly, Ino got the tweezers, "Yes… those are getting thinner…!"

"Nooooo!"

* * *

Finally, Ino was done and with 15 minutes to spare.

"That wasn't so bad, now was it?" Ino smiled as she put her things away. TenTen looked at her new friend's look and gave a small smile, "Wow! You look so different!"

Rock Lee looked at himself in the mirror and sighed, "My eyebrows…!"

Ino had finally placed all her things away and shook her head, "Enough… they will grow back soon."

But Lee did look very different, with his eyebrows thinner and new hairstyle, along with outfit… he looked almost as good as an Uchiha.

He looked at himself in the mirror again and looked like he was the male protagonist of a shoujo manga.

Ino and TenTen had to admit, he looked pretty damn fine.

"Hopefully," TenTen began, "The girls will leave you alone and not cling like stupid lil fangirls."

Still looking in the mirror, Lee smiled, "I do look... Better."

All of a sudden, he turned his head and his speed in turning decreased dramatically as the background changed. It was all pink with those sparkly circles.

Sakura petals fell out of nowhere as he spoke in a deep male protagonist voice, "What is going on?"

TenTen and Ino looked around confused at the sudden background change along with sound effects, all shoujo.

"Looks like you are in the way to becoming an officially shoujo male protagonist." Ino said as she looked around.

"That means trouble." TenTen sighed while grabbing her head.

Lee grinned and twirled around, suddenly a big poof of smoke appeared around Lee.

"Lee!" Both girls yelled while running to him.

He had transformed into a stereotypical shoujo school uniform.

"Whoa…!" Lee looked at his new outfit, "Nice! First button undone, blazer on shoulder along with my school bag, and serious, but cool look!"

TenTen looked at a paper that fell and picked it up, "It says: To become a true shoujo male protagonist, you must be some jackass, but still love your female protagonist."

Ino frowned, "What does that mean?"

Lee crossed his arms, "Like in _**Black Prince and Wolf Girl,**_ maybe _**Kaichou-wa Maid-sama**_ , Usui wasn't really a jackass, but he did kinda blackmail her… or Kyo Sohma from _**Fruits Basket.**_ "

All of sudden Kyo appeared in the window, "Hey, shut up, newbie! You don't know me! It was always an accident with Tohru!"

Tohru appeared while entering the front door with tears in her eyes, "Y-You mean you never loved me?"

Kyo's eyes grew wide, "N-No, wait! That's not what I meant by accident! I meant, hey, Tohru, wait!"

Tohru gave a fake smile, "No, it's alright. I understand. Mother always wanted me to understand!"

With that she ran away with Kyo chasing after her.

TenTen placed her hands on her hips, "Why does she always bring up her dead mother up in literally every conversation?"

Lee frowned with tears streaming down his face, "Shut up, TenTen! She's suffered enough! She had to live in the woods for two weeks, _two weeks._ "

"Oh, my god, Lee!" TenTen sighed.

Gasping, Ino looked at her watch, "Shit, I gotta go. See you later! TenTen, I trust you with this plan! And Lee, you're hired for the job! Bye!"

As Ino left her place, TenTen turned to Lee and said, "Come on Lee, I need to give you some lessons."

"Lessons?" questioned Lee as he followed TenTen out the door.

As they reached outside, they headed towards a small park. TenTen then said, "Alright. You will learn how to become a gentleman! What would you say once Sakura gets here?"

Rock Lee pondered for a second and grinned, "I'd say: Sakura! You look extra hot today!"

TenTen slapped her forehead and sighed, "This is going to be a long day..."

* * *

Neji had just finished his report and turned it in to the Hokage.

As he was walking back towards the Hyuga place, he spotted TenTen with some guy at the park.

He stopped walking and watched them from afar.

 _'What is she doing with this guy? Who IS he? Why is he wearing a school uniform?_ ' Neji thought as he carefully tried to get close without either of them noticing.

"Damnit!" TenTen cried, "No, say it with feeling!"

Lee nodded and said, "You are so beautiful... I'd do anything for you!"

Nevi's eyes grew wide and with confusion _, 'Did... Did TenTen find someone? I had always thought she liked me...'_

He then heard TenTen sigh, "No! What was that? You have to say it differently, not all dramatic either."

Then, some girls walked past them and giggled at Lee.

Lee blinked a bit and thought, _'Are they laughing at me?'_

One of the girls whispered: Man, he's so cute! Is he a new shinobi here?

TenTen crossed her arms, annoyed. She then yelled at them, "Hey! Get lost! He's already taken!"

' _For Sakura, that is.'_ TenTen thought while glaring at the girls.

The group of girls all gasped at her sudden burst and walked away while giving TenTen evil glares.

Neji's eyes grew wide in horror, _'Ahhhh shit! TenTen really IS dating that guy! Who IS he?!'_

Turning her head, she placed her hands on her hips, "Let's just continue… and you have to be more careful with those girls! It could ruin the date!"

Neji sighed as he turned around to leave. He couldn't continue to see both of them together.

 _'I think I lost my chance...'_ he thought while walking away from them. With a sad look, he went on home.

But as he was walking home, guy was following him while playing sad violin music.

Neji tried hard to ignore him, but it was getting very annoying.

Turning around, Neji yelled, "What the hell, man?"

Laughing nervously, the man gulped, "S-Sorry, dude! I get paid to do this!"

Neji looked confused with wide eyes, "Who pays you to follow sad guys while playing the violin?"

The man sweated nervously, "Gotta go, kid!"

Suddenly, a framed picture of a living room appeared and the man sang, "Blue's skiddo, we can too!"

And without another word, the man disappeared.

"The f-ck was that about?" Neji asked in disbelief.

* * *

As TenTen was busy "training" Lee on how to be a gentlemen, Shikamaru and Choji started to prepare themselves.

"Alright, Choji..." Shikamaru sighed, "It's almost time… We have to get Naruto here by 10. That's when Sakura is going to pass by with Lee..."

Choji nodded as they began to search for Naruto.

Looking throughout the busy village of Konoha, they tried to find Naruto.

Then, they saw Kakashi walking down the street with his ninja dogs. It looked as if they had just come from a mission.

"Kakashi-sensei!" Choji grinned as he ran up to him.

Kakashi looked up and gave a small wave, "Yo."

Shikamaru gave a nod and asked, "Have you seen Naruto by any chance?"

It took a while for him to think. But finally, Kakashi said, "I think I saw him near the hospital. I just came from the Hokage."

Giving their thanks and goodbye, both Choji and Shikamaru ran towards the hospital.

* * *

Sakura looked out her window from her apartment. It felt so boring not being able to do anything... Since she would be seeing Ino after work, Sakura didn't know what to do. Also, Ino had to wake her up that early…

As she looked out the window a whole bunch of random couples filled the area below.

"What the-?" Sakura blinked in confusion.

The couples all of a sudden started to make out as some kids threw flower petals.

Quickly shaking her head she turned away from the window and sighed.

Sakura pulled her hair and let a frustrated cry, "Damn it! Get out of my head, Uzumaki!"

She made herself fall on her couch and stayed like that for a couple of minutes.

 _'Get out get out, get outta ma head..._ ' Sakura thought _. 'And fall into my arms in-'_

Shaking her head, Sakura decided not to finish those lyrics.

Suddenly an idea came to her head, "I know! I'll just visit Ino! Sure it's a bit early…"

Quickly changing into something casual, Sakura grabbed her purse and ran out.

"Maybe they need help at the hospital!"

But she stopped right outside and thought, "Oh, shit not now. I gotta see my drama first… wanna know who really killed that guy…"

So she turned around and sat down in her living room. Great job, Sakura…

* * *

As the day went by, Ino was now finally getting her short break. It was now about 9:30 AM.

"I have to check on Sakura!" Ino mumbled to herself as she walked past the front desk.

 _'I gotta convince her!'_

But just in, Ino bumped into someone and it was none other than Sakura.

"Sakura?" Ino said in confusion, "I was gonna see you! I don't have a long break..."

Grinning, Sakura said, "Ah! I just... Wanted to check on you and things... Also, I gotta ask you something..."

Ino wrapped her arm around Sakura's shoulder, "Let's go sit outside, ok?"

As they both went to sit just outside the hospital, Sakura hesitantly began.

"I... I really want to forget him!" she blurted out.

 _'No matter how hard it will be...'_ Sakura thought sadly.

Ino watched her friend all sad, but on the inside Ino was singing. She didn't even have to work that hard!

Nodding, Ino smiled "Ah, yes! I understand you want to forget him? Then... Just go out with someone!"

"But who?" Sakura sighed, "Naruto doesn't want me in his life anymore, and... I can't keep hurting myself. He's not worth it..."

"I know!" Ino exclaimed as she turned to Sakura, "Just go out with Lee!"

Blinking a few times, Sakura said nothing.

"Oh, come on!" Ino exclaimed, "At least do it to make Naruto jealous!"

Crossing her arms, Sakura began, "Ino! I can't just use a person! He'll get hurt!"

"Don't worry, Sakura! He'll understand! Remember the motto?"

Squinting in confusion, Sakura asked, "What motto?"

"To make Naruto jealous!"

Sakura frowned, "I thought it was to forget him...!"

"That, too...! But mostly the jealous part!"

Sakura shrugged, "I mean... It wouldn't hurt, right? I mean, only Lee's feelings!"

Ino patted her friends back, "Alright. Go onto your date."

With wide eyes, Sakura exclaimed, "Date?"

"Yes, date! With Lee, who else? He's waiting for you outside your house! Bye, Sakura!"

Before Sakura could protest, Ino ran off into the hospital.

Sakura looked back at the direction of her house and stood up.

 _'Might as well... but how did..?'_

The pink haired girl began to walk to her house. The sun was shining already very bright, so she shielded her eyes a bit. As she was a good distance away from the hospital, she saw Shikamaru and Choji running.

Sakura gave a wave and smile at them, as they quickly did the same thing while running past her.

"I wonder what their hurry is…"

* * *

"Ahhh shit, Choji!" Shikamaru ran, "She's almost home! We have to hurry!"

"Need!" Choji panted while taking out some chips, "Energy source!"

Soon they stopped near the hospital and looked around.

"Come on!" Shikamaru mumbled to himself.

And just by sheer luck, Naruto had just turned a corner facing them. He was eating some squid, enjoyably.

"Naruto!" both of them exclaimed as they reached him.

Looking up, Naruto grinned, "Oh! Hey guys, what's up?"

Choji suddenly asked, "Where'd you get that squid on a stick?"

He pointed downtown, "Just over there. It's really good."

Shikamaru grinned _'Yea, this can work.'_

Choji nodded, "Why don't you show us?"

Giving a shrug, he agreed, "Sure!"

As Naruto led the way in the front, Shikamaru and Choji both gave each other a secret low five.

* * *

TenTen was hiding in the bushes just outside Sakura's home. Rock Lee was waiting patiently at her door, waiting for Sakura with a huge bouquet of flowers.

 _'Finally! After hard work, I finally get to go out with Sakura!'_ Lee thought happily, _'Even if it's a setup. Maybe I can really make her fall for me!'_

"Can I help you...?" a voice asked behind him.

Turning around, Lee saw Sakura, eyeing him suspiciously with her hands at her hips.

"Sakura!" He grinned and nervously handed her the big bouquet of flowers.

"Lee? You look… different! How?" Sakura asked surprised and slowly received the flowers.

Nodding, Lee said, "Yes, I um… wanted to look good for our date!"

Laughing nervously, Sakura began, "Yea… well, I don't know how you got the idea but-"

Grabbing her hands, Lee said, "Sakura, please give me a chance! I know Naruto broke your heart and you haven't been yourself. So please give me a chance to make you happy!"

TenTen grinned from the bushes, "Nice…!"

Sakura sighed, "I can't promise you anything… I'm trying to forget… so, I'll try…"

Lee turned towards TenTen's direction and gave a big thumbs up while grinning. TenTen gasped and quickly hid. She angrily mumbled to herself, "Lee, you baka!"

"Who are you giving a thumbs up to?" Sakura asked looking at his direction.

Gulping, Lee turned around and quickly said, "Nah, I was just doing it to myself!"

Shrugging, Sakura said, "Alright. Let's just get going."

As they began to walk forward, Lee slowly reached his hand towards Sakura's hand. Finally he made contact, but she immediately stopped and pulled away.

"Um, Lee…! I don't think holding hands is really… necessary!" She nervously laughed.

Rock Lee nodded, "You're right, Sakura."

He suddenly signaled his arm out, waiting for her to wrap her arm around it.

"How about this?" He asked, smiling.

Rolling her eyes, Sakura smiled, "Sure, I guess…"

Sakura wrapped her arm around Lee's and they both started to walk.

TenTen started to follow them, careful that Sakura wouldn't catch her.

"You look so different, Lee!" Sakura commented, "I thought you were some burglar."

"With flowers waiting?" He asked.

"You know what I meant."

"No, I-"

Sakura then gasped at the place they stopped. It was a nice little café with the cutest decorations.

"This is so cute!" Sakura grinned as she let go of Lee's arm and into the café.

But before Lee could enter, some girls ran up to him and asked for an autograph or picture.

TenTen glared at them and sighed, "They are going to ruin the plan!"

As Lee was trying to pass by politely, TenTen stomped her way through and yelled, "Get outta here! This guy has a disease!"

All the girls gasped and turned to confirm it by Lee. He gulped and said, "Um, Yes! That is right! The disease of youth!"

The girls gave a sigh of relief and were about to resume to their fangirling, when TenTen yelled, "No! The disease is called 'gastroitis'! He farts so hard, his organs explode! If you smell his fart, you also get the disease!"

All the girls screamed and covered their nose as they quickly ran away.

Lee turned to TenTen and said, "Really? Some fart disease? And isn't 'gastr' having to do with the stomach?"

TenTen sighed, "It was the most random thing I could come up with! Now, go! Sakura probably went to the bathroom and she'll be back soon!"

But before he could agree, random sakura petals started to fall.

"Oh, no…" Lee sighed, "Must be the shoujo effect."

Suddenly from a distance, they heard a muffled song being played… the "Sakura Kiss" song, to be exact.

Appearing before their eyes, Tamaki Suoh appeared in his uniform while holding a red rose. The background changed dramatically, "Hello, fellow new member…! I am Tamaki Suoh, from Ouran High School Host Club!"

Then, the rest of the crew appeared out of nowhere, with the same effects and elegant music in the background, all doing their thing.

"What the-?!"TenTen yelled as even more shoujo male characters appeared.

"Before you are officially part of the Shoujo Male list…" Motoharu Yano from _ **bokura ga ita**_ said with a threatening look, "…You must have a tragic background story."

Lee pondered for a second and said while the lights got dark and the only light on was the one focused on Lee, "When… When I was a young boy…"

All of the male protagonists gasped.

"When I _was a young warthog!"_ He sang.

But he got hit by Timone as he angrily said, "Hey! They want a tragic _Shoujo_ story, not Disney, ya moron!"

Laughing nervously, Lee nodded, "Right… When I was a young boy, I could not use chakra like all the other kids my age here in the ninja world. I wanted to be a ninja so badly!"

Many of the group started to cry, except for the serious ones. Ok, maybe Zero Kiryu from _ **Vampire Knight**_ let out a small tear.

' _The hell is chakra?'_ They all thought.

"That's so sad!" A cry was heard from the roof. Everyone looked up and frowned.

"Get outta here!" Tomoe from _**kamisama hajimemashita**_ yelled angrily.

Lee looked up to see Goku from Dragon Ball Z, crying.

"Why does everyone hate him?" TenTen asked Tamaki.

"Because… he's so cool and strong! I mean, look at him!" He frowned. He then yelled, "Go back to Shoen, you freak!"

TenTen sighed, "Um, this is a shoen manga-"

But she was interrupted by a loud voice coming from above. She gasped, "Vegeta!?"

He laughed loudly while in the air and arms crossed, "You idiots better start running! Kakarot here can destroy you in less than a second. But _I_ can destroy you faster!"

He prepared himself to fight, but Goku placed his arm around Vegeta, "It's alright, Vegeta… Someday we'll become shoujo protagonists! One day, Vegeta! Now, back to the Dragon Balls!"

"I really need to stop being around you weaklings…" Vegeta groaned.

Both disappeared and Tamaki sighed and turned to Lee and TenTen happily, "Anyways, we hate Shoen Characters!"

TenTen frowned, "This _IS_ a Shoen manga! Ever heard of _Naruto_?"

The whole group gasped dramatically while sakura petals fell on all of them on a colorful background.

"What?!" Tamaki gasped as he turned to Kyoya for answers.

Punching in numbers in a calculator, Kyoya then fixed his glasses with one finger, doing the anime glasses thing, "Looks like this is true… we are currently in the middle of a fanfic made by a girl with nothing better to do… a Naruto fanfic."

Tamaki frowned and took out a badge from his pocket, "This was going to be given to you, but since you are a Shoen character, you can't have this. Let's go back to our shoujo lives, guys!"

All of them disappeared one by one. Lee watched in sadness and disappointment, "W-Wait! I can do all the other shoujo moves! I was born for this…!"

"Save it, kid!" Kyo frowned, "Tohru doesn't want to talk to me because of you!"

TenTen sighed, "You two end up together and have a beautiful family."

Kyo blushed and crossed his arms, "Well, it's not like I was complaining."

Tohru passed and sighed, "I knew mother was right…!" And then she ran away along with the other shoujo characters.

"Tohru, wait!" Kyo ran after her and also disappearing.

Lee gasped, "Sakura! With all this, we totally forgot about Sakura!"

"Well, go after her!"

Nodding, Lee gave another thumbs up and into the café.

Sure enough, Sakura was in the bathroom and had just come out.

"I'm sorry I didn't tell you where I went. I was in the restroom, but had to wait because they were cleaning it." Sakura said as they took a seat at the window.

"It's ok!" Lee smiled.

The waitress in baby pink came in all happily, "Hello! Here is the menu! Pleas signal me when you are ready to order~!"

Sakura and Lee both took the menus and looked over.

But just outside the restaurant, Neji was walking past and saw a whole bunch of shoujo characters. He scoffed, "Shoujo characters…"

Ryuuji Takasu from _**Toradora**_ frowned, "Actually I'm not really a shoujo charcter. Literally half these guys aren't."

Neji shrugged and kept going. He was heading up to train with Gai, but he turned his head and his eyes grew wide.

' _That bastard!'_ Neji thought angrily while staring at Lee and Sakura, _'Now he's going out with Sakura?! Who IS he, anyways? TenTen will be so devastated to find out this guy is a fake!'_

Without another word, he stumbled right in the café and in front of Sakura and Lee's table.

TenTen watched, thinking he would just say hello… but then her expression turned into horror.

"Hey!" Neji yelled angrily at Rock Lee. Neji still didn't know that Rock Lee had some transformation done.

Lee turned his head and smiled, "Ah! Neji!"

Neji frowned angrily ad grabbed Lee's collar, causing sakura petals to fall out, "How dare you go out with two people at the same time!"

Sakura looked at Lee confused, "What?"

Rock Lee was also confused, "What the hell, Neji? Didn't TenTen tell you?"

Neji grabbed his collar tighter, "Shut up! Quit acting like you know me! When TenTen sees how you really are, she'll be very disappointed!"

Lee frowned and tried to get out of Neji's grip, "Neji! What are you talking about! I'm going out with Sakura!"

Sakura was still confused and said, "Neji, let him go...!"

Neji ignored Sakura's request and glared at Lee, "Listen, don't lie to me! I saw you in the park with TenTen! How long have you two gone out? Why wasn't I informed of this! What TenTen needs is a real man, like me! Not someone low like you!"

Sakura placed her arm on Neji's shoulder, "Let go of Rock Lee, Neji!"

Neji's eyes grew wide suddenly and nervously laughed, "L-Lee?"

Finally letting go of his grip, Lee tried to fix his collar, "Yes! Who did you think I was?"

Blushing furiously, Neji tried not to make eye contact, "I... I thought you were someone else. Damn it why didn't you tell me you had some makeover?"

Lee patted his friend's back, "I'll explain later... And now all my suspicions are true. Bye, Neji!"

Lee pushed Neji out of the restaurant. Still filled with embarrassment, Neji slowly walked away towards the training grounds.

' _Now they will know for sure…'_ He gulped nervously.

TenTen angrily walked up to Neji, "You almost ruined the whole thing! Why would you attack Lee that way?!"

Neji tried not to look at her; he just looked past her and said in the calmest voice he could muster, "I was just… testing him."

But before TenTen could respond, she gasped and pulled Neji into the bushes.

"What?" Neji asked.

Both peeked up to see Shikamaru, Choji and Naruto eating some squid.

TenTen sighed, "Ok, I guess I should do some explaining. I'm sure Ino would also like your help."

"Hmm… fascinating…" a deep voice said in behind them.

"What the?!" TenTen asked a bit taken back, "Umetarou Nozaki from _**gekkan shoujo nozaki-kun**_?!"

Yes, he was hiding with them while taking notes, "Sorry, I was just observing for my manga."

Neji frowned, "You're big for a shoujo protagonist."

Nozaki laughed, "You don't really know…"

"Heeeeelllooooo!" Takeo Gouda from _**ore monogatari**_ grinned happily while standing in front of them.

Meanwhile, Shikamaru saw Sakura with Lee and quickly finished his squid.

"Yo, why don't we go in here?" Shikamaru asked as Choji finished his food.

Naruto shrugged, "I guess. Hey, isn't this place new?"

Nodding, Shikamaru led the way inside.

Lee and Sakura had already ordered some cute pastries and she was laughing at Lee trying to be funny with a strawberry. He was trying to balance it on his nose while making weird noises, "WHoAAA WATCH OUT! GWEEEHH!"

But somehow, he was making shoujo bubbles around him, and when they popped, it got all sticky.

"Sir, please stop causing a mess!" A waitresses asked as she was cleaning, "Also, with the random sakura petals."

"I'm sorry!" Lee said, "I don't really know how to control it yet."

Naruto looked up and saw Sakura laughing at someone he had never seen before.

Shikamaru grinned at Choji and then patted Naruto's back, "Oh, _look_ Naruto! There's Sakura! With… someone with a lot of sakura petals…"

' _Where's Lee?!'_ Both Shikamaru and Choji thought confused. Of course, none of the three knew of Lee's transformation of becoming the male protagonist of a shoujo manga.

"Let's go greet them!" Choji grinned as they began their way.

Naruto wanted to protest, but was pulled in by Choji.

As they made their way, Sakura looked up and stopped laughing. Confused, Lee turned his head and then smiled, "Hey! How's it going, guys?"

' _He knows us?!'_ All three guys thought.

"Hey, Sakura!" Shikamaru smiled and then turned to Lee, "And…?"

Laughing, Lee said, "I got a transformation! For my date with Sakura!"

Naruto's eyes grew wide and he cried, "A _DATE?!_ "

Sakura smirked and pulled Lee's arm, "That's _right_. I'm going out with Rock Lee now!"

Lee blushed a bit and nervously laughed, "Yea…! Why don't you all join us for a while? After this, we're going out for a walk."

Shikamaru and Choji pulled a chair to their table, "Sure!"

Naruto just stood there, glaring at Sakura and Lee filled with jealousy.

' _I can't show any signs…'_ Naruto thought ' _No matter how much it hurts me… I have to protect her. Besides, it's with Lee… he's a good person.'_

With force, Naruto pulled a chair, but the only room left, was to sit next to Sakura.

' _Ahh shit.'_ Both Sakura and Naruto thought anxiously.

* * *

 **I'm so sorry. I was looking at this again and I go wtf? Ha, anyways thanks so much for all the support! And its kind of funny when I see "blah blah is now following the perfect plan" like lol… yea. Anyways, im updating tomorrow soo yea. Thanks again, and I hope you all enjoyed this chap!**


	5. Remember That?

CH5: Remember That?

* * *

Sakura tried not to look at Naruto. She held her breath for a while and focused on anything other than him.

She looked up to see Lee laughing at a joke Choji just said.

All Naruto could think of was Sakura. How pretty she looked today, how she smiled, and her voice.

He missed it so much over the months. Once again, he hated himself for being cursed.

 _'She has Lee now... I can't do anything anyways...'_

"Hey, wanna order something?" Choji asked excitedly.

Shikamaru nodded, "Sure, why _not_?"

Choji signaled for the waitress to come and as soon as she came, the three started to order.

"Three slices of strawberry cake!" Choji began greedily, "A dozen of pastel macaroons, um lemon flavor, flan, strawberry milkshake, aanndd a hello kitty shaped cupcake! Please."

Naruto looked confused, "Is that all for you?"

Choji nodded innocently, "Damn right, f*ckers!"

The waitress had just finished writing Choji's order and looked up to hear the others.

"I'll just have a cappuccino." Naruto simply said.

"No foam? Or any other thing?"

Naruto shook his head, "No, thanks."

Shikamaru then ordered his, "I'll have the same as him, a cappuccino."

Once again the waitress asked, "No foam or anything else?"

"Yes, nothing else. Thank you."

As everyone waited for their order, Rock lee began to talk about his mission with Neji and Yamato.

"It's not any secret mission, so here it goes!"

Naruto and Sakura tried to focus on Lee, but every once and a while, they would glance at each other quickly.

Sakura tried not to sigh. This place then reminded her of the time Naruto took her to this wonderful place. She gave herself a smile remembering.

 _It was about a month after they had started dating. Naruto had come to wake her up very early in the morning, around 5 AM._

 _Waiting eagerly, Naruto rang her doorbell multiple times until a very pissed off Sakura opened her door._

 _"Ooo, Naruto!" She crossed her arms. She was still in her pajamas and her hair was a mess. "Someone_ _ **better**_ _be dying!"_

 _Naruto grinned happily, "I know you have the day off at the hospital, Sakura-chan! So I decided... to take you somewhere nice!"_

 _Sakura blinked a few times and then smiled. Blushing a bit of embarrassment, she said, "Whoops, sorry I spoke like that."_

" _Perfectly fine, Sakura-chan! I know you in the mornings can be a little grumpy…"_

 _Sakura went to kiss him and said while pulling his arm inside, "Come wait inside while I get ready!"_

 _Naruto nodded sheepishly as he walked behind his girlfriend._

 _"What should I wear?" Sakura asked as Naruto took a seat in the living room._

 _"Something that's very comfortable! We're going to be outdoors. Also, pack some clothes."_

 _Sakura sighed and said, "Might as well go in my mission outfit. Pack some clothes?"_

 _Naruto nodded happily, "Yea, that! And it's a surprise; just pack some sleeping clothes and other stuff."_

 _After a couple of minutes, Sakura finally came out and grinned, "So, where are we going?"_

 _Naruto stood up and grinned, "Nope! It's a surprise, remember?"_

 _He held out his hand and she gladly took it._

 _As they stepped outside the house, it was still a bit dark._

 _"Is it in Konoha?" Sakura asked, still holding his hand tightly._

 _Naruto shook his head, "Nope! It's somewhere Pervy Sage and I bumped into while training!"_

 _Sakura grinned, "Then it must be beautiful."_

 _As they walked towards the main gates, Sakura stopped._

 _"What is it?" Naruto asked._

 _"Are you sure, it's alright for us to just leave? I mean, you did hear about the Akatsuki, right?"_

 _Naruto nodded, "Yes, I do. But don't worry, Sakura-chan! I've already told Tsunade-baa-chan! She says it would be alright. Besides..."_

 _He leaned in while placing his hand gently on her cheek, "You are a very strong kunoichi. And a medical one! And not trying to brag but, I'm pretty good myself. So we'll be ok!"_

 _Sakura nodded while giving him a kiss. She grinned, "You're right. Now let's go."_

 _Without another second, they both dashed forward._

 _"Can't catch me, Sakura-chan!" He laughed while jumping on a tree._

 _Sakura yelled, "We'll see about that!"_

 _Before Naruto could step on another branch, he felt someone pull his leg._

 _"What the- Ahh!"_

 _Sakura landed on the ground perfectly and stood up with her arms out and watched Naruto fall._

 _Naruto landed, bridal style, at Sakura's arms._

 _"Caught ya!" She grinned._

 _Naruto gave an exaggerated faint with his hand on his forehead, "That was too fast! "_

 _They both laughed and she placed him down._

 _Both decided to walk from now on._

 _"Don't want another leg pull surprise!" Naruto grinned._

 _"Hey! You asked for the challenge, I went for it."_

 _Naruto's eyes grew wide, "Oh no... We didn't eat breakfast! But have no fear, I brought some snacks."_

 _He pulled out his bag and got some rice cakes out. He gave one to Sakura and another to himself._

 _They both decided to walk and eat at the same time._

 _Sakura ate hers slowly and then asked "How far is it?"_

 _Pondering for a bit, Naruto responded, "About 3 hours? I'm not so sure... Not that far."_

 _Sakura frowned, "Then why didn't you visit us back then?"_

 _"I didn't know it was so close!"_

 _They walked more and more, with the sun beginning to shine very brightly._

 _It took longer than expected, 5 hours, to get to the destination._

 _"Ok, Sakura-chan!" Naruto smiled eagerly, "Close your eyes..."_

 _Nodding, she carefully closed her eyes and hold onto Naruto's hand._

 _He began to walk for a couple of minutes and then stopped._

 _"Ready?" he asked._

 _Sakura nodded, "Yea!"_

 _Taking a couple more steps, Sakura could hear water rushing by and many birds from a distance._

 _"You can open them up now!"_

 _Slowly opening her eyes, she gasped at the view. In front of her were huge mountains with a beautiful waterfall. The grass was very green and also covered in pretty colorful wild flowers._

 _But across the waterfall was an endless field of strawberries._

 _It looked like it was some magical place out of a fairy tale._

 _"Naruto!" she gasped in awe, "This place is... So wonderful!"_

 _She smelled the nice fresh air and the breeze brushing past her hair._

 _Sakura ran across the large flower field happily while grabbing Naruto's hands._

 _Looking up at the high mountains, she saw that big rain clouds were nearing._

" _Oh, no…!" She said disappointedly, "Soon it will start to rain…"_

 _Naruto looked and gave a sour look, "Guess we'll have to enjoy as much as we can for now."_

 _Sakura bent down and picked up some flowers and began to tie them together to create a flower crown, "Yo, watch this, Uzumaki!"_

 _She spun around holding onto the crown on her head and laughed._

 _Naruto grinned and began to make his own little crown, but no matter how hard he tried, the flowers always fell off._

" _Let me help…" She offered as she began to fix it up._

 _As it was done, he placed it on his head and showed a peace sign towards her while grinning._

 _By the time they were done with the flower field, Sakura looked up once again to see the dark clouds getting closer._

" _Let's go to the strawberry field." She suggested and he nodded._

 _As they made their way towards the field, Sakura asked, "Where are we going to hide from the rain?"_

 _Grinning, Naruto said, "There's this cabin lodge just after the field. We can stay there, I know the person who owns it and asked time ahead. Also, you have two more days off of work."_

 _Sakura stopped walking and looked at him in surprise, "That much? How?"_

" _Well, I have my ways, Sakura-chan!"_

 _Sakura blushed a bit and looked ahead, "You know… you didn't really have to do this for me…"_

 _Grabbing her hand, he smiled, "I wanted to do this. I saw how stressed you were getting at of the hospital and thought you could use a break."_

" _Thank you, Naruto…"_

 _They had finally made it towards the waterfall. It rushed with great force forward, making both Naruto and Sakura stop._

" _Let's jump across!" Sakura challenged Naruto as she got in set._

 _Nodding, Naruto was also in set, next to Sakura._

" _Go!" They both yelled as they jumped across the large rushing river below them._

" _Ahh!" They screamed while looking below._

 _Finally, they reached the other side all tumbling down._

" _Man, that was lame!" Sakura laughed as she got up and dusted off her shorts._

" _I won!" Naruto yelled as he raised his arms up, "Whoo!"_

 _Sakura frowned, "No, I did, baka!"_

 _But they both landed at the same distance from the shore._

" _Alright. Only by a hair, though." Sakura said smiling at him._

 _They started to walk towards the field and Sakura ran to pick some up, "Whoa, these are big..!"_

 _Naruto nodded, "Yea, it's alright if we pick some up. We could make some jam with it later on or maybe some cake!"_

 _Sakura grinned, "Sure! But where do we keep them?"_

 _Pulling out his bag, Naruto smiled, "In here."_

 _It started to get windy as soon as they headed deeper into the large field._

" _Look, this one's shaped like your head." Sakura held out a strawberry with a spiky texture._

" _Whoa, lemme see…" He grabbed it and examined it, "Pretty neat!"_

 _As soon as they got enough strawberries rain started to sprinkle on them._

 _Sakura looked up and saw the sky in pure dark heavy grey._

" _Thunderstorm's coming…" She said as they began to walk towards the place Naruto was talking about._

 _Naruto looked at her and said, "We better hurry, or we'll get caught in the real rain!"_

 _Unfortunately, the rain did come on them pretty hard in the middle. As they reached the cabin lodge, they were soaking wet._

" _We made it!" Naruto cheered as he stepped inside. Sakura's hair stuck to the side of her face and the flower crown, was a bit messy, too._

" _Naruto!" an old lady said happily. She was in her 60s, with dark black hair, but smiling brightly at the young boy._

 _Sakura watched as they entered the lodge. Everything was so big and a huge fireplace in the living room._

" _It's been a while, boy! I've prepared everything for your visit." She then turned to Sakura and smiled, "Hello! Welcome! You can just call me Nani."_

 _Sakura nodded and bowed a bit, "Thank you for having us over."_

 _Nani chuckled a bit, "You're so pretty…! I've never seen hair color like yours before…!"_

 _Touching her hair, Sakura gave a nervous laugh, "Yea… my parents chose it out for me…"_

 _Sakura asked, "You live here by yourself? It's so big!"_

 _Nani chuckled, "Yes, I do. But don't let this look fool you. I'm pretty strong for someone my age…"_

 _Suddenly realizing, Nani gasped, "Oh my! Why, I do apologize! Let me get the baths ready, oh dear! You must be very cold!"_

 _As she sped off, Sakura ran up to her, "Hey, why don't I help?"_

 _Grabbing Sakura's hands tightly, Nani gave a small smile, "Yes, that would be a very nice."_

 _Sakura turned around and said to Naruto, "Hey, go put our stuff in the rooms!"_

* * *

 _After a nice hot bath, Sakura and Naruto smelled something great._

" _Mm…!" Naruto smelled the air, "Something smells good!"_

 _Sakura walked downstairs into the kitchen and saw Nani cooking something like looked like stew._

" _Want me to help?" Sakura asked as Naruto entered the kitchen excitedly, "Whoa, this smells good!"_

" _Yes, please." Nani smiled as she got out the bowls, "Please place these at the dining table."_

 _Sakura nodded as she took them. Naruto looked around and smiled, "Last time we were here, it was with that pervert!"_

" _He even gave me a book of his as a thank you… I was very surprised on what it actually was."_

 _Naruto's eyes grew wide, "He gave you that?!"_

 _Sakura returned and asked, "Gave her what?"_

" _That book Kaka-sensei reads…"_

 _Rolling her eyes, Sakura walked past him and towards Nani, "I'm done. Is there anything else?"_

" _Time to eat! I'm sure the spoons are there…" Nani lifted the pot and went on as Sakura went ahead to check for anything else missing._

 _As soon as everything was in good spot, they all began to eat._

" _Mmm! This is so good!" Naruto grinned, "And sorta fits with all this thunderstorm…"_

 _Nani smiled, "Oh, well that's good. Did you kids harvest any strawberryies?"_

 _Sakura nodded and covered her mouth as she spoke, "Yes, we did. Maybe we can use your kitchen to make jam or cake?"_

" _Oh, of course! I'm sure you two know how to make them?" Nani asked while grabbing her cup and taking a sip._

 _Sakura shrugged, "I kinda do… Naruto?"_

 _Naruto scratched his head, "No, not really…"_

" _It's easy! I'll show you…" Nani smiled._

* * *

 _After eating, Sakura and Naruto washed the dishes as Nani prepared everything for the jam and cake._

" _Naruto! You're getting soap all over my arm." Sakura sighed as she washed it off._

 _Naruto grabbed a big pile of bubbles and placed it covering his face from his nose and under, "Yo, guess who I am?"_

 _Sakura laughed, "Let me guess, you're Kakashi-sensei."_

 _He then mimicked his old teacher, "Yooo, I'm sooo sorry I'm late! I was helping this old lady! Oh, look, I'm ignoring you and reading something inappropriate!"_

 _Sakura continued to laugh as she placed the clean dishes away, "Oh my god, Naruto…!"_

 _Nani then called out, "Everything's ready!"_

 _Naruto washed off his face and went over along with Sakura._

" _Alright." Nani smiled, "Just mix these ingredients up; I'll focus on the jam part."_

 _Sakura got strawberries and began to cut them while Naruto started to mix the ingredients. But as Sakura was beginning to cut them, one strawberry was about to roll off the counter._

" _Oh, snap!" Sakura cried as she tried to reach it, and just in time, Naruto caught it before it hit the floor._

" _Caught it!" He grinned while handing it to her._

 _Sakura grabbed it and smiled, "Thanks, Naruto."_

 _After cutting them up, Sakura began to smash them hard, "I'm only gonna use a little bit of chakra… to make things quick."_

 _Naurto nodded as he stepped back, still mixing the ingredients in the bowl._

" _Cha!" Sakura yelled as she smashed the strawberries, but unfortunately, it was a bit too much._

 _It spilled all over the room and especially all over Naruto._

 _Sakura blushed red, "Whoops… guess I used a bit too much… I keep forgetting I can smash things literally..."_

 _Naruto laughed loudly, "Way to go, Sakura-chan!"_

 _Nani walked in the room and gasped, "My! What happened here?"_

" _I accidently smashed them up too hard?" Sakura nervously laughed as she grabbed some paper towels to clean._

 _Naruto placed down the bowl on the table and began to help, "I'll clean this side, and you the other side."_

 _Smiling, Sakura agreed, "Thank you."_

 _Sakura cleaned the floor as Naruto did the same but on the other side. Soon, they meet each other. With her finger, Sakura picked up some smashed strawberry and placed it on top of his nose and laughed._

 _Naruto crossed his eyes to see the smashed strawberry on his nose, "Ew, gross! Was this on the floor?"_

" _No, it was on the counter." Sakura laughed, but Naruto grabbed some smashed strawberry from the counter and threw it at her face, "Ha! Got ya back!"_

 _Sakura laughed while wiping off, "Gross! I didn't throw it at you!"_

 _She did the same and threw some at him, but missed and landed on the fridge where it wasn't clean._

 _They continued to throw each other some food when Sakura gasped and stood up quickly, only to have Naruto throw her some more at her arm._

" _What?" He asked stopping._

 _She turned her head and said, "Shit, this isn't our house! We better clean up, quick!"_

 _Naruto's eyes grew wide in realization as they both began to panic and hurry in cleaning quick._

 _Sakura saw that there was just so much mess around. But then she snapped her fingers as an idea came._

" _I know!" She made hand signs and out came two other Sakuras._

 _Naruto looked up and grinned. He also did his hand sign, "Shadow-clone jutsu!"_

 _Soon 10 Naurtos popped out with a cry, "Ya!"_

" _Ok, Me's…" Naruto said, "Time to clean up!"_

 _The Sakura clones were already busy cleaning along with the real one._

" _Awww but boss!" Naruto clone #2 said whining, "It'll take_ _ **5**_ _-ever! HA! Get it? It's like_ _ **4-**_ _ever but since it'll be longer, it's_ _ **5**_ _-ever?"_

 _Naruto clone #6 shook his head in disappointment, "Damn, it. Let's just get going."_

" _Nani is in the other room, right?" Sakura asked as she cleaned the stove quickly._

" _Yea, I think she is…" Naruto said as he cleaned the outside of the fridge with another clone._

 _Sakura then turned her head and sighed. One of her clones and Naurto's were busy flirting in the back._

" _Oh no…" Sakura shook her head and patted Naruto's back, "Huh, what?" He asked._

 _She pointed her hand showed him the two._

" _Wow! You're_ _ **so**_ _strong!" Sakura #3 said while leaning on the counter, watching Naruto #2 trying to 'flex' his arms, "Damn right! Hyahh!"_

 _The real Naruto walked up to him along with Sakura and said to the clone, "Hey! You're supposed to be helping!"_

 _Sakura crossed her arms and looked at her clone, "I'm so disappointed in you. You're supposed to be helping!"_

 _But Sakura #3 and Naruto #2 both grabbed each other and cried, "B-B-But we LOVE each other!"_

 _Sakura frowned, "You two_ _ **just**_ _met! Naruto, let's just deactivate them."_

 _Naruto nodded, but Naruto #2 hold out his hand, "Wait! B-Before you deactivate us… I have something to say…"_

 _Naruto #2 looked at Sakura#3 and got on one knee, "You… You are the best thing that has happened to me. Will you marry me?"_

 _Naruto sniffed and looked at Sakura, "I can't do this to them..! They're about to get married!"_

" _It's just an excuse from them to not clean!" She crossed her arms._

 _Soon they heard the door open and out ran Sakura #3 while holding Naruto #2's hand. They laughed evilly while running in the rain._

 _Sakura just stood there with a bored look, "They do know that if they are not near us, they will disappear, right?"_

 _Naruto and the other clones started to cry, "What a tragic love story! Forbidden love!"_

" _They just met!"_

 _Soon they heard a loud POOF! Yes, they were gone._

 _Naruto #6 wiped his tears and sniffed, "He-He was such an idiot, but I always loved him!"_

 _Sakura #2 cried, "She was like a sister to me!"_

" _Snap out of it!" Sakura sighed as she started to clean. But she couldn't help but let a tear roll down her cheek as she whispered, "They deserved so much more..."_

 _But then she realized and wiped her tears quickly, "Baka! They will come back! If we summon them again they will."_

 _Naruto laughed, "Oh, right._ _ **Anyways**_ _, let's just clean."_

 _In less than 5 minutes, the whole place was clean. Naruto continued to mix the ingredients, and Sakura smashed the strawberries, without any chakra._

 _Sakura gathered the newly smashed strawberries and signaled Naruto to come over with the bowl. Both placed the strawberries in the bowl and mixed well._

 _Just then, Nani walked in, "Jam is cooking as we speak in the other kitchen. So, how's it going here?"_

 _Sakura got out a cake pan and smiled, "Just ready to pour it in here!"_

 _Nani nodded, "Yes, it seems to be good enough. I'll get out the whipped frosting. After I check on the jam for a bit and do something else."_

 _Naruto nodded, "Ok!" He finished pouring in the cake mix in the pan and placed it in the oven. Sakura put on the time it needed and placed down the dirty dish in the sink._

 _Sakura then sat on a chair and sighed, "That was fun."_

 _Naruto also took a seat next to her and smiled, "Yea, cooking is much more fun with you around."_

 _Sakura laughed, "Much messier, too!"_

 _She placed her head down and watched it still rain out the window. It was already getting late._

 _Rubbing her back, Naruto slowly touched her hair. He smiled as she turned her eyes to him, also smiling softly._

 _The rain hit the window softly as some branches quietly scratched it. Nothing else could be heard but the rain and stove running in the other kitchen._

 _Sakura let out a small yawn and whispered, "I'm kind of tired… When will the cake be ready?"_

 _Naruto grinned softly, "In a while… why don't you go and sleep upstairs? I'll call when it's ready."_

 _Shaking her head softly, she said, "No, it's alright. I'll sleep later. It's just that I haven't had a real good night's rest lately. You know, with all the hospital and stuff."_

" _I know how hard you are working to get that position. I'm sure Tsunade-baa-chan will see it sooner or later."_

 _Sakura lifted her head and gave the biggest smile to him, "When that time comes, I'll make sure you are the first to know!"_

 _Naruto chuckled, "I'll probably find out before you do. And when that time comes, we'll celebrate!"_

 _But what Sakura didn't know, was that when that time would come, her life would be the total opposite. He wouldn't be the first to know, but the last to know._

 _They continued to talk more until they heard a 'ding!' Looking up, Naruto said, "Looks like the cake is ready!"_

 _Sakura got up and got out some cooking mittens and pulled out the cake. She placed it on the counter and made sure it was well cooked._

" _Looks like it's ready!" She said all excited._

 _Just in Nani came, "Jam is ready, but not to eat. It'll be really ready in about 24 hours."_

" _What?" Sakura and Naruto asked, "Why that long?"_

 _Nani sighed and smiled, "It needs to seal for a bit. But it'll be worth it!"_

 _She walked over to the cake and said, "Looks like we need to put some whipped frosting. Oh my, I forgot to get it."_

 _Nani quickly got out of the kitchen to head on into the mini food storage. In the meantime, Naruto and Sakura got out all the utensils needed._

 _Nani came back smiling, "I got it! Now, let's do this."_

 _They all worked together to decorate the cake with frosting, sprinkles and even wrote their names on it._

 _Naruto beamed happily, "Time to cut this!"_

 _Nani got out the knife and handed it to Sakura, "Would you do the honors?"_

 _Sakura nodded as she cut the cake in small pieces, "Alright, who wants the first piece?"_

 _But before Naruto could yell out "mine", Sakura handed a piece to Nani on a plate and fork, "Here you go. Thank you for having us over."_

 _Accepting, Nani nodded, "Yes, I'm glad you all decided to visit me. It's been fun to have some company."_

 _Sakura handed the next piece to Naruto, "Here you go, Naruto."_

" _Mmm!" He eagerly grabbed it, "Thanks, Sakura-chan!"_

 _As Sakura got her piece, Nani gave a small gasp, "Oh! You know what would be very good with this? Some hot chocolate..! I should have thought of this first…!"_

 _Quickly getting her pot out and milk, she began to make some nice hot chocolate._

" _Will be out in a few minutes." She said as she mixed._

 _Sakura and Naruto sat down and ate their cake._

" _It's so good!" Sakura gave a small moan, "This tastes so good! Ugh!"_

 _Naruto laughed as he quickly finished his own cake, "I'm going to get more!"_

 _Catching Sakura off guard, he stole a piece of her cake, "Ha!"_

 _She gasped and frowned, "Naruto! Don't go stealing my cake!"_

 _But he went and stole some more, making Sakura get mad, but she couldn't for any longer as she tried to get it back. It was still in his hand, nearing his mouth._

" _Give it back!" She laughed as she leaned forward to get her piece, "You're making a mess, baka!"_

 _Naruto gulped the first piece of stolen cake and grinned, "It's so good!"_

" _Get some more over there!"_

" _But yours seems better."_

 _Nani watched them and softly laughed at herself. Looking at her pot, she saw that the chocolate drink was getting ready._

 _She pulled out some cups and waited for the chocolate to boil._

" _Oh, great, now I don't have any more…" Sakura sighed as she stood up, "I'll get some more."_

" _Me, too!" Naruto said as he followed her._

 _Sakura turned around, "This time you eat your own damn cake. I only got one bite!"_

 _Looking up, Sakura saw the chocolate drink ready, "Oh, looks like the drink is ready! Naruto, go clean the mess you made under the table. I'll help Nani serve the drinks."_

 _Naruto placed his plate down and nodded._

 _Sakura helped serve the drinks and asked, "Would you like some milk on your drink to be a little bit cooler?"_

 _Nani shook her head, "No, I prefer mine to be really hot."_

 _Sakura gave a nod and turned around to Naruto who was cleaning, "Yo! What about you, Naruto? Would you like some milk added to your drink, so it can be cooler? Because it's kinda hot."_

 _Naruto finished cleaning and stood up, "Nah, I'm cool."_

 _Sakura nodded and placed the milk away in the fridge and got two cups as Nani brought her own to the table._

" _I'll get more cake." Sakura said as she placed the cups on the table._

 _They all ate and talked a bit some more. Nani talked about her experiences alone in this lodge and how she would see bears or coyotes at night._

 _She would go on talking about other people she had met and her friends, along with her family._

 _But, it was getting late and they all decided to clean up to head towards bed._

 _As the lights went out in the house, Sakura climbed up stairs, with Naruto behind._

 _Their rooms were near each other and before getting in their own way, Sakura grabbed Naruto's arm, "Hey, wait…"_

 _He stopped a bit confused, "Yea? Oh, don't worry, Sakura-chan. I won't go in without your permission, so you don't… you know, feel uncomfortable."_

 _But Sakura shook her head, "No, I was kind of thinking, that… maybe you would want to sleep together?"_

 _Naruto blushed, "B-But, Sakura-chan! What if Nani hears us?!"_

 _Sakura blushed and hit his arm, "No, you idiot! I didn't mean that! You know what? Never mind!"_

 _She turned around and was about to head into her room when Naruto said, "Wait, Sakura-chan! I'm sorry for misunderstanding, I'm just…"_

 _Sakura smiled and placed her hands on her hips, "Well? Come on, Naruto!"_

 _Naruto nodded and ran past her to jump on the bed, "Ah, nice, your bed feels so much better than mine!"_

 _Sakura got in next to him and wrapped her arm around his torso as she placed her head on his chest. She gave a sleepy sigh and mumbled, "Goodnight, Naruto…"_

 _Naruto grinned softly and rested wrapped his arms around her and whispered, "Goodnight, Sakura-chan…"_

Sakura felt warm inside remembering that day. It was so much fun the other days, too. She almost laughed out loud remembering that they ate so much jam, their stomachs ached for the next two days.

Their orders finally came as Lee came to a finish.

"And that's how we beat up that beast!" Lee beamed as he looked over to see Sakura's reaction and was pleased to see her smile. But she was smiling to a memory of herself and did not hear anything of what Lee had just said. Poor Lee….

"Here is your order!" two waitresses had to bring it in because of Chouji's order.

"One simple cappuccino for you... And you..." She handed it to both Shikamaru and Naruto.

"And 3 slices of cake, a dozen of pastel macaroons, lemon flavor, strawberry milkshake, flan, and a hello kitty shaped cupcake for this gentleman!" After that, they left the check on the table.

"Alright!" Choji smiled and thanked both the waitresses.

Lee grinned at Sakura, "So, what did you think, Sakura?"

' _Oh, shit!'_ Sakura thought nervously, _'I wasn't paying attention! Plus, I gotta make Naruto jealous… He was talking about some mission… So…"_

Sakura then reached forward her arm and grabbed Lee's, "Wow, Lee! You were _REALLY_ brave!"

Rock lee blushed a bit, "Nah, it was nothing."

Sakura gave a small giggle, "You're so cute when you blush!"

' _IS IT WORKING!?'_ She turned her eyes to see Naruto's reaction, but he was too busy drinking his drink.

' _DAMN IT!'_ She angrily thought as she began to think some other way.

But Naruto was filled with jealousy. He wanted to yell out that he had to lie to Sakura to protect her.

But he urged himself not to.

Lee then remembered what TenTen had said to him earlier:

 _Remember, Lee! When Sakura starts giving you random compliments in front of Naruto, that means she wants to get Naruto jealous! So, play along! (along… along… along…!)_

Her voice echoed in his mind as he shook his head a bit.

' _Alright! I gotta play along!_ ' He took a deep breath and said, "Sakura, you are the most beautiful thing to walk on this earth!"

' _Nailed it!'_ Lee smirked to himself.

But Shikamaru and Choji sweat-dropped, _'That was so lame…'_

It was somehow working, because Naruto wouldn't dare to look up.

Shikamaru looked over to see Naruto's face. It looked like it could kill anyone.

Sakura smiled at Lee, "How do you do it? You know, I've been wanting to tell you something… but maybe somewhere else."

"R-Really, Sakura?" Lee asked all happily.

Naruto looked up quickly to see them both "lovingly" look at each other. He quickly drank his drink and placed it down hard.

' _What is she going to tell him?_ ' Naruto thought anxiously, ' _What if it's some love confession? I just… have to know!'_

Shikamaru smirked to himself and hit Choji on the arm, "Hey, Choji, looks like the next part is on."

Choji looked up from eating and then nodded at Shikamaru, "You're right."

Quickly swallowing his food, Choji then yelled out, "Well, please _excuse_ us. Since we interrupted this, lovely date."

Sakura smiled at them, "No, it's perfectly fine. We were just about to leave, right, love?"

' _LOVE!?'_ Naruto's mind went wild, but he tried his best to stop himself from breaking apart.

Lee blushed and nodded, "Yes, Sakura and I will take a walk in the park. So…"

Shikamaru and Choji stood up and nodded. Shikamaru took out some money and placed it on the table, "I will pay for our expenses. Choji, you owe me one."

Lee nodded and also paid his and Sakura's plate.

Sakura wrapped her arms around Lee's and grinned, "Well! We'll be going out now! Bye-bye~!"

Choji waved, "Ok! Goodbye!"

Lee and Sakura stepped out the café and started to head out towards the park.

Shikamaru stopped Choji and showed him 3 fingers, then counting down.

"3…2…1…"

"Um, guys…!" Naruto spoke right on queue while walking past them, "I'm going… somewhere important! I'll see you guys, tomorrow!"

Without another word, he ran off the same direction as Lee and Sakura.

"Bingo!" Shikamaru and Choji both said with a satisfied look.

* * *

 **Yea, a lil "flashback". (Dramatic announcer guy's voice): WHAT WILL HAPPEN NEXT!? –fire explosions in the background-**

 **Anyways, my computer has been sooo slow! I tried editing, but it kept freezing… so yea it was like a couple minutes late… So, its unedited here, please excuse the errors…! Thanks for all the support, too! Next chap maybe on Tuesday or Wednesday, depends on my computer.**


	6. Don't do it

Ch6: Don't do it

* * *

Sakura held onto Lee tightly as they began to walk away. She gave a disappointed sigh and said as they began making their way, "I'm sorry, Lee…"

Rock Lee gave a sad smile, "Don't worry about it…"

She lowered her eyes to see the sidewalk of the park. She wanted to really start over, but her heart wouldn't let her. And she didn't want to hurt Lee either or give him false hopes.

Lee sadly breathed out as he lifted his head. He grinned as he softly elbowed Sakura.

Looking up, Sakura also grinned, "Hm, hm!"

From afar, they saw Neji and TenTen sitting together on a park bench, very close to each other.

"You saw him, right?" Lee asked her as they slowly made their way.

Sakura nodded, "Yea, I saw, too. It is kind of obvious…"

* * *

"Oh, I see now." Neji nodded as he understood what TenTen meant by "plan".

They were sitting in the park talking on a bench.

She smiled at him, "Yea, it's a good thing you know now!"

She suddenly saw how close they were and blushed a bit while looking away from him. But something had bothered her ever since he stepped out of the café.

"Um, Neji?" She asked softly while slowly turning to see him. He was in deep thought and then turned his head, "Yes?"

"Why… why were you so angry with Lee? Who did you think it was?"

TenTen feared that instead of Naruto to get jealous, it would be Neji. Did he have some crush on Sakura?!

But she tried her best not to show that it bothered her, so she fake laughed, "What? Do you have some crush on Sakura or something?"

Neji blushed and looked away while crossing his arms, "No. It wasn't that. I… I just saw him with this girl I liked earlier…"

TenTen gave a sad smile. _'So… so he_ _ **does**_ _have another person he has feeling for. Who could it be? Lee was surrounded by girls today!'_

"What are you talking about?" She asked, trying to hide her sadness.

He tried to avoid eye contact and said, "I um… I thought he was some liar trying to trick her or using her…"

TenTen gave a small chuckle, "Seems like she's lucky to have someone like you to watch out for her."

Neji took a deep breath and turned his head to face her, "TenTen, that girl was-"

"Yo! Neji!"

They looked up and saw Lee with Sakura, still in his arms. He gave them a thumbs up while walking past them, "Yo! Good luck, Neji!"

Sakura waved at them, "Hey! Good luck, Neji!"

TenTen looked confused as she watched them walk away.

"Good luck?" TenTen asked him while crossing her arms.

Neji kept a straight face, but inside him, he was panicking, _'THEY KNOW! Let's get this over with, already.'_

He took another deep breath and said, "Yes, I … I have to tell you something important."

TenTen gasped as she pulled Neji close to her and pointed, "It's Naruto!"

' _God damn it, Naruto!'_ Neji angrily thought.

Naruto was "casually" walking down the park while whistling with his hands in pocket.

Neji and TenTen watched in horror as he walked up to them, "Aye, yo guys! Wassup, my skillet?"

"W-What the hell?" Neji asked in repulsion, "Why are you acting like this, Naruto?"

Naruto frowned as he pulled out a lollipop, "Hey, I'm trying to be cool."

TenTen crossed her arms and raised an eyebrow, "Why? It's not working by the way. And stop using 4kids' version of a cigarette for a lollipop."

Naruto still had the lollipop in his mouth and pretended it was a cigarette, "Ay, it's my life. Also, where did those guys go? I gotta beat up that nerd."

A random hot chick passes by and Naruto yelled, "AYE YO MA! LEMME GET CHA NUMBAH!"

Neji sighed as everything around him froze. He looked at the author and yelled, "Alright! This whole scene is jacked up. Naruto is way out of character here! Let's restart!"

Ok, let's start over.

-Insert tape rewinding noise-

He took another deep breath and said, "Yes, I … I have to tell you something important."

TenTen gasped as she pulled Neji close to her and pointed, "It's Naruto!"

' _God damn it, Naruto!_ ' Neji angrily thought.

Naruto was talking to some people, and it looked like he was giving directions. He pointed somewhere and the tourists smiled and thanked him.

After they had left, he quickly scanned the area for Lee and Sakura.

TenTen whispered, "What's he doing? I thought Shikamaru and Choji would be with him!"

Neji shook his head and whispered back, "I dunno… Maybe he's following Sakura?"

She gave a small smile, "Mm, someone must be jealous!"

Naruto looked around and spotted Neji and TenTen sitting real close on the bench.

He quickly jogged up to them and waved, "Hey!" He then gave them an eyebrow wiggle, "So, what are you guys up to? Hm hm, sittin' real close and all."

Neji and TenTen quickly sat normally while yelling, "Shut up!"

Naruto chuckled, "Nah, it's alright. Anyways… have you, by any chance see Rock Lee?"

Neji smirked, "Yea, I saw him! He passed by with Sakura, but they sure did seem very happy together. Aren't they on a date?"

' _That's what you get, Naruto.'_ Neji thought evilly, _'For ruining my chance to confess to TenTen!'_

TenTen kicked Neji and smiled at Naruto, who looked disappointed, "Yea! I saw him! He went that way!"

Giving a small nod, Naruto slowly walked away towards the direction TenTen pointed at.

As Naruto left, TenTen frowned, "Why did you have to say it like that? Did you see how sad he looked?"

Neji started to panic inside, but kept cool outside, "Yea, I was just wanting to, you know… see how he would really feel about her."

That was a lie.

TenTen smiled, "Right! And… by the looks of it, it looks like he stills has feelings for her. Why did he break if off then…?"

Neji sighed, "It must be a problem with him. Maybe with the kyuubi inside of him? Or the fear of the Akatsuki?"

TenTen raised her eyebrows, "Nah, that's kind of stupid. I mean, we'd all be here to help!"

Neji shrugged, "It was only a suggestion."

* * *

Naruto walked up and saw them together and stopped.

' _I should just turn around… I don't want to seem like some stalker or something. It's her life… I kicked her out.'_

But as he was about to turn around, he saw Sakura struggling to get rid of Lee. And he saw Lee holding tightly onto her wrist with an annoyed expression.

Without hesitation, he ran up to her and yanked her out of Lee's grip, "Let go of her!"

Sakura looked up and gasped, "Naruto?"

Naruto stood in front of her and frowned at Lee, "What the hell is wrong with you?! You're so out of character! Why were you pulling Sakura like that?"

All of a sudden, everything froze and turned black and white. Peeking from the side, another Rock Lee appeared with a red marker, "Ha ha… hey, guys! Ok, just to let you know, it was an accident with Sakura and I."

A picture appeared in the back of Sakura's woven sweater get caught in Lee's watch.

"Um, you see…" Lee circled the knot, "Sakura's sweater got caught in my watch… and she tried to pull it."

Another picture appeared where Sakura tried her best to pull away.

"And, I didn't want her sweater to rip, so I held her wrist… and tried to untie it…" Lee circled his hand in the picture.

"That's where Naruto comes in, getting all protective."

The last picture showed Naruto furiously running towards them with red eyes.

"Oh my god, he activated the sharingan!"

Everything then went back to normal.

"Naruto, wait!" Lee cried out as Naruto waited angrily for him.

"It was all an accident!" Lee said as he showed his wrist, "Her sweater was caught onto my watch!"

Sakura nervously laughed, "Y-Yea! And because of that, my sweater seems to be ruined."

She showed her wrist to see the sweater all ruined.

Naruto blushed and nervously laughed, "O-Oh! Well, that's good… I mean, not for the sweater, but… I have to go now."

Without another word, he walked away quickly, trying to avoid any questions being asked to him.

Sakura tried to call out to him, but he was gone before she could have a chance.

Lee watched her sadly as he shoved his hands on his pocket.

"Looks like he still cares for you, Sakura." Lee tried to smile, "Maybe it was some sort of mistake… You should talk to him."

Sakura sighed and looked at Naruto's direction, "No, what he told me was real. He probably did that, because he's a good person."

She covered her face then looked up and smiled at him, "I really wish I could give you a chance, Lee…"

He shrugged and looked at the floor, "Nah, I understand. You can't easily forget someone, right?"

She sniffed, "Yea… I really want to forget, but… I don't want to hurt you or give you false hopes."

Rock Lee looked up and grinned, "Don't worry about it, Sakura! I'll be here if you change your mind."

Sakura grinned at him and gave him a hug, "Thank you, Lee!"

He hugged back at her tightly and said, "No problem."

Naruto sighed as he watched them hug tightly at each other. He had turned around to see if they were chasing after him, but saw them hugging.

He turned around and walked away, ' _Conceal don't feel, don't let them know…!'_

He shook his head, "Ah, I shouldn't have watched Frozen Kunoichi last night…"

"I'm sure, she'll be happy with Lee now." He mumbled to himself, "Now, I will never tell her the real reason."

* * *

Sakura and Rock Lee decided to continue on their "date", but as friends. They walked back normally, side by side.

Walking past the park, they spotted TenTen angrily sitting by herself.

"TenTen!" Lee called out as they walked up to her.

She looked up and sighed, "Sorry, I'm just…"

"Where's Neji?" Asked Sakura while looking around.

"He ran away!" TenTen frowned.

"Ran away?!" Both Sakura and Lee yelled out in confusion.

TenTen nodded, "Yea, he was going to tell me something, when he just walked away, telling me to not follow him! What the hell is his problem?"

' _God damn it, Neji…'_ Both Lee and Sakura thought.

Sakura smiled at her, "Hey, why don't you hang out with us? Lee and I are going to go shopping."

"Shopping?" TenTen asked while looking at Lee.

Lee blushed a bit, "I need a new pair of pants… I seem to be getting taller for some reason."

"And!" Sakura said, "I see there's this sale on the 'Ninja Bath and Body Works'!"

TenTen grinned, "Ok! Let's go! I wanna see if I can get a new scent for me!"

All three of them started to walk into the busy streets of Konoha. It was already noon and saw it was getting a bit hot.

"I'll take off my sweater…" Sakura said as she took it off and revealed to be wearing a pink tank top.

' _Sakura's so cute!'_ Lee blushed while sakura petals fell from his shoujo effect.

As they reached the store, Sakura and TenTen rushed in to get greeted by a wave of sweetness.

Lee walked in while looking around and gasped at all of the options.

"H-H-Hello sir!" a worker said nervously at him, "D-D-Do you n-need help?"

Lee looked up confused, "Whoa! What's all this?"

"It's lotion, you dumbass." The worker said as she suddenly changed attitude, "You here with your friends?"

Lee looked over to see Sakura and TenTen in the sale section and sweat dropped, "Yea, I am…"

All of a sudden a bunch of fangirls came and surrounded Lee.

"Whoooaaa!" They squealed, "What scent do you like, senpai?"

Lee nervously laughed, "S-Senpai? Um, this one?"

It was the "Kunoichi Japanese Cherry Blossom" one.

All of a sudden, all the girls got every single one available and bought it all.

"Whoa!" The store manager came in. He looked at Lee impressed, "You convinced those girls to buy that?!"

Lee shrugged as his fangirls surrounded him.

The manager grabbed Lee, and wrapped his arm around him, "Hey, um, tell them to buy this one: Stinky Feet Goo. We've been trying to sell it, but it hasn't even sold one. So, try to see…"

The manager gave him a pack with the perfume and lotion.

Lee gulped and said out loud, "I really love this one the most!"

The girls went crazy and one even snatched it from his hands and they all cleared the shelves to buy the thing.

"Amazing!" the manager said, "You're hired!"

Sakura and TenTen walked up to Lee and sighed, "No luck… the lines are packed!"

Lee looked at the manager and shrugged, "Sorry, pal. But thanks for the offer. I'm a shinobi!"

" _SHINOBI!?_ " The girls squealed, "Even better!"

"He'll rescue me from those bad guys!" One girl pretended to faint.

"Hey!" Sakura frowned while crossing her arms, "Don't fall into that stupid stereotype where girls need to be saved by guys! We can protect ourselves, right, TenTen?"

"Damn right!" TenTen grinned.

But the fangirls had a bored expression and yelled, "Yea, SHUT UP!"

"Wait~!" The manager pushed his way to Rock Lee, "Please! Work for us! We'll make millions together!"

Sakura and TenTen pulled Lee out and they all ran away from the stampede that was running after them.

"Let's just train!" Sakura yelled as they made a sharp turn and stampede still following them.

TenTen panted, "We have to lose them, first! Damn it, Lee!"

"Don't blame me! Blame you guys for giving me this stupid makeover!"

All of a sudden, they were trapped in a corner. Sakura frowned, "Damn it… we can't just fight them! We have to distract them…!"

The manager pushed his way through and got on his knees, "Please! Help me with the store!"

But before anyone could do anything, they heard a loud: "Sharingan!"

The whole stampede of girls and the manager started to doze off.

Sakura blinked to see Itachi standing there with his arms crossed. After a couple of seconds later, Sasuke came panting, "I'm coming, brother!"

"Sasuke, you're late! What if Dr. Haruno was hurt?"

Lee and TenTen rolled their eyes, "And us?"

Itachi nodded, "And that attractive guy along with the hair buns girl."

TenTen frowned, "Hair buns girls?!"

Sakura sighed as she walked up to him, "Thank you for stopping them…"

Itachi nodded, "Just doing my job. Don't worry about them… they still think they are chasing you."

Sasuke crossed his arms and said, "Yea, you guys better be careful, next time!"

Sakura nodded as she said, "We will… But, what will happen to them?"

"Some of my men will be here to make sure they are safe by the time they wake up. And the genjutsu will come to an end if you guys don't leave soon."

Lee gave a nod, "Thanks, officer! Let's go!"

Sakura, TenTen and Lee walked away into the training ground. Itachi sighed as he looked at Sasuke.

"Let's go get lunch." Itachi smiled at his little brother.

Sasuke grinned, "Sure, ok."

But then Itachi got a signal: There's another stampede of crazy fanboys chasing this poor guy!

Sasuke gave a low growl, "Those damn fanboys…"

"I wonder who they are chasing this time…" Itachi sighed as he signaled Sasuke to follow him.

The fanboys were chasing Ninja!Zayn Malik from 4/5ths Direction. Lmao well, he aint part of that group anymore.

* * *

Sakura, TenTen, and Lee all trained together all up until the evening.

"Whoa, that was a nice refreshing!" Sakura grinned as she stretched a bit.

TenTen nodded as she drank some water that they had bought a couple of minutes ago.

Lee was still training in the back with Gai, who stopped by about an hour ago.

"I wonder where Neji is!" Gai said as he did some pushups with his hands only, "He told me he'd be here… waited for him, but he never showed up!"

TenTen heard them and growled, "That Neji! He left me, too!"

Sakura leaned on a tree and smiled, "Don't worry much about it! Maybe he's feeling a bit sick or something."

Lee walked up to them, as Gai followed behind on his hands.

"I didn't see him sick…" Lee said confused.

"What if its mentally?" Sakura asked a bit worried, "You never know…"

"There's nothing wrong with me!" Neji said as he came in walking.

"Neji!" TenTen said a bit surprised at his outfit.

Neji was wearing a nice black fitted suit with his long hair out. He also had a big bouquet of flowers in his hands.

Lee and Sakura looked at each other and gave each other a knowing look.

Gai looked at him questionably, "What's all this about?"

Neji gulped as he walked forward, _'I have to do this! But… I can't?'_

Then, in his mind, Shinobi!Shia Labeouf appeared in Neji's mind and he gave Neji a very motivated speech.

' _Do it!_ _ **JUST**_ _do it! What are you waiting for? Just_ _ **DO IT**_ _!'_

"Shinobi Shia Labeouf?" Neji asked himself.

' _Don't just stand there,_ _ **DO IT! Just DO IT!**_ _Yesterday you said tomorrow, and tomorrow is now._ _ **DO IT! JUST DO IT!'**_

Neji sniffed as a tear threatened to escape his eyes.

"I'll do it." Neji whispered to himself as he stepped forward.

"I'll like to speak to TenTen in private, please." He said with all seriousness.

Gai nodded and so did the rest. TenTen stood there with her arms crossed, "Why did you leave me in the park all alone? What have you been doing for six hours?"

The rest had left and Neji said, "Uhhhh…."

-random flashback-

"Pale pink seems to be a pretty good color for your nails…" Neji said to the people in the nail salon.

"Sir, can I _please_ help you?" Asked an employee.

Neji shrugged, "Yea, I've come for my monthly nail checkup thing…"

"Yes, we know sir. We've been telling you to take a seat. All you've been doing is telling people what nail color they should get."

"… _Right_." Neji said as he got his monthly nails done.

-end of random flashback-

"I was busy with something important." He said casually.

TenTen sighed, "I was worried about you! And after what Gai-sensei told me…"

Neji handed her the flowers, not wanting to see her face, "Here, this is for you…"

Her eyes grew wide as she slowly took them, "For me? Geez, we didn't argue that much! Ha, this looks as if we've been going out or something!"

"TenTen, I've got to finish what I began…" He said as he turned to look at her.

His face got red as he looked up, "TenTen! I…! I….!"

He looked at his hands and screamed out in pain, "I-I! Don't look, TenTen!"

TenTen looked at him in horror, "Neji! What's going on?!"

"I'm-I'm turning…! I'm…!" He looked like he was in pain, but suddenly he stopped as his background turned pink and sparkly, "I'm turning fabulous!"

TenTen smacked him with the bouquet, "Neji! I thought something was wrong with you!"

He shook his head and reached out for her, "No, wait… for real now. Sorry, I thought that would sort of… cheer you up?"

She crossed her arms, "Since when are you the… 'funny' type? You're nothing but always so serious!"

He sighed and looked at his hands, "I don't know…!" He looked up at her and said, "TenTen, I always feel different whenever I'm around you!"

TenTen blushed as she covered her mouth with her front side of her hand, "W-What are you saying?"

' _Finally!'_ TenTen thought happily, _'Better not be some stupid joke!'_

He took a deep breath and said, "That I really like you… and I want to be more than just friends."

Before TenTen could open her mouth, Neji interrupted, "And don't say something stupid like 'Super Special Best Friends?!' bullcrap."

Smiling at him, TenTen said softly, "Well, I… I also want to be more than just friends…"

Neji smiled as he continued, "Ever since I saw you with Lee, I realized that I had some feelings for you. I was suddenly a bit jealous thinking he would take you away from me."

' _That was this morning…'_ TenTen grinned, but was going to think of it, but shook her head.

"So, you wanna like just hang out or something?" Neji asked while scratching the back of his head.

' _So lame!'_ TenTen sweat-dropped, "Neji, I want to be with you! I want to be more than just friends…!"

Neji smiled, "Yea! Ok! So um… how do we do this..?"

TenTen slapped her forehead, "Just agree you'll be my boyfriend from now on."

Neji nodded, "Alright. I agree."

TenTen mentally screamed in her head, but shook her head.

"Neji! I've also always liked you! I've wanted to tell you, but I never had the courage… now that we are going out, I'll be able to express my feelings with much ease."

Grinning, Neji leaned forward, "So will I…"

' _Yes! Our first kiss…'_ TenTen thought as she also leaned a bit forward.

"SUGOIIII!"

TenTen and Neji looked up annoyed to see Gai, Lee, and Sakura clapping their hands hiding behind some bushes.

"Aw, congrats, you two!" Sakura grinned while Lee threw some confetti and Gai blowing some party horns.

TenTen growled angrily and pulled out one of her weapons, sending Gai and Lee flying into the sky.

Sakura gulped and nervously laughed, "Whoa, look at the time! Anyways, congrats… Um, bye!"

She quickly left, not wanting to ruin the moment even more, _'I told those guys to wait!'_

TenTen sighed and turned to see Neji, who didn't seem that surprised.

Neji slowly grabbed TenTen's shoulders and said, "Ok, this is the part where we kiss as random fireworks explode in the background."

TenTen grinned as she leaned forward and kissed his lips softly. And yes, there were fireworks… Those were Lee and Gai exploding in the background. But don't worry, they were ok.

* * *

Ino had finally gotten out of work and eagerly went to see the progress.

"I hope Naruto found his true feelings for her!" Ino said to herself excitedly.

As she made it to Lee's house, she knocked on the door.

Lee opened it up all bandaged looking, "Oh, hey, Ino!"

Ino looked confused, "W-What happened?"

Gai was in his couch sleeping, but was also bandaged up.

"Got beaten up by TenTen for ruining her moment with Neji." He told her as he slowly walked towards the kitchen, "Then, Sakura came and healed us."

Ino's eyes grew wide with excitement, "Oh, yes! Sakura! How did it go? Are they together?"

Lee nervously poured some orange juice he had just gotten out, into a cup, "Um… Not exactly?"

Ino crossed her arms and tapped her foot, "What do you mean? Explain."

Rock Lee gulped, "She um, he… it's obvious he still has feelings for her. Jealousy was written all over his face."

Her face brightened, "Oh, that's very good!"

Drinking his juice, he heard her say, "And what's the bad part?"

Sweat started to form at his bandaged forehead, "She, um, she doesn't want to go out with me because she doesn't want to hurt my feelings… And Naruto is a stubborn person."

"So… they aren't together?" Ino asked sadly.

"Sorry, but she doesn't want to believe that he would care for her. She's still hurt, I see. And he, well, doesn't do anything to help."

Ino gave out a frustrated growl, "Arg!"

Angrily walking to the front door and opening it, she turned her head and yelled at him, "You're fired, Lee! You had _one_ job! _ONE!_ "

She slammed the door and stomped out to hear Lee yell, "But I did do my job! It was to take Sakura out!"

Ino sighed, "Great… now for another plan…"

Lee finished his drink and sighed, "It isn't really my fault…"

"Lee!"

He turned to see his teacher stand up, miraculously healed, "Gai-Sensei?"

Gai smirked, "I know exactly how to get those two back together!"

* * *

 **Next chapter(s) will involve Kakashi, Gai, and Asuma! It will mostly be them… so stay tuned!**


	7. Challenge Accepted

CH 7: Challenge Accepted

* * *

It was about two days after Gai promised Lee he would help. So far, Gai hadn't done anything… he was too busy thinking of a way.

Gai was sitting on top of a building while thinking deeply on how he would help Lee…

 _'Shouldn't have opened my mouth...'_ Gai thought as he tried to think, _'But his face was so happy when I said I'd help!'_

Fake tears covered his face, "This is for you... Lee!"

"Yo, Gai..."

Turning his face, Gai saw Kakashi standing next to him while reading his book.

"You seem to be in some troublesome thinking..." Kakashi said as he flipped a page to his book.

Gai looked up and groaned, "I did something I shouldn't have said!"

"Well, what did-"

"I promised Lee I would help get Sakura and Naruto back together!"

Kakashi squint his eyes, "And? What's wrong with that?"

Gai laughed, "Nothing at all! I take a challenge as I see it! You are looking at the world's best love expert!"

Kakashi scoffed while blushing, "Yea right... I could do so much better."

"I don't believe ya!" Gai crossed his arms, "All you do is read those things!"

There was a loud "dad" laugh being heard from behind them.

Both Gai and Kakashi turned around to see Asuma smoking as he slowly came from the shadows.

"You guys think you are love experts?" Asuma began while inhaling his cigarette, "Last time I checked, I'm the one with a girlfriend, and you two are still single."

Kakashi crossed his arms, "So? That doesn't mean we don't know anything about being love experts."

Asmua exhaled his cigarette, "Yes... It does."

Gai frowned, "Alright, enough! I take _ANOTHER_ challenge! I will beat each one of you to prove I am the best love expert!"

Kakashi crossed his arms, "I'm sorry, but I believe that's me."

Asuma laughed a 'dad' laugh… again, "You kiddos don't know who yer messin with!"

Gai breathed in deeply and exhaled, "Alright! We will all take turns! While two secretly observe, the other must try their best to get Sakura and Naruto together!"

Suddenly they heard some small panting and saw Yamato standing there.

"Yamato!" Kakashi nodded.

But Yamato frowned, "Shouldn't you guys be more worried for the Akatsuki? Or better yet, leave those two to solve their own problems!?"

All three of them gave him a bored expression. They all huddled together while Gai kept looking up, then back.

Kakashi nodded to them as they stood up. Asuma cleared his throat, "Yamato, I'm afraid you can't participate in our competition."

" _What_!?" Yamato yelled confused.

"That's right." Gai began, "You would ruin our way of bringing these two together. Also, because Tsunade-sama has called you for an upcoming mission."

Yamato blinked, "Oh! Well... You're safe for now..."

Yamato jumped off the building, landing smoothly (don't do this kids, unless you're a professional ninja like Yamato).

Kakashi watched Yamato leave and said, "Did Tsunade-sama really say that?"

Gai scoffed, "Yes? What? You think _IM_ a liar?"

Kakashi sighed, "Nothing... Just saying."

Asuma had finished his cigarette and threw it to the bottom of his shoe and stepped on it, "Without further ado, let's get started!"

Both Gai and Asuma looked at each other competitively.

"Sorry to burst your bubble, but Sakura has work today and Naruto is training with the Jiraiya." Kakashi sighed as he turned to another page.

Gai's eyes lit with fury, "We must talk to the Hokage! She must let Sakura and Naruto have some break!"

Asuma shook his head, "I don't think this competitive thing will work. With all the fear of the Akatsuki, I don't think Tsunade-sama can allow any less help. We are in need of as much available shinobi to help out. You never know with those Akatsuki."

But Gai ignored his response and jumped off, soon being followed by Kakashi and Asuma.

"You're right…"Gai began as he was walking towards the Hokage building, "But, with bad attitudes, these have, what help could that be?"

Kakashi scratched the back of his head, "Um, Sakura made it to the top doctor and during her little 'breakup' with Naruto…"

Gai sighed and turned around, "Don't you know? Too much stress can cause some heart problems! I bet Sakura is extremely stressed… Along with Naruto."

Asuma rolled his eyes, "Yea, then might as well bring in Tsunade-sama, along with the while village, to get a break."

Gai continued to walk, "At least just for today… I mean, what are we doing?"

Putting his book away, Kakashi answered, "We should be doing something more important than what we are currently doing…"

As they made it to the office, Yamato had just stepped out.

"Kakashi-senpai!" Yamato said, "What brings you here?"

Gai walked past him, "We must speak to Tsunade-sama!"

Yamato looked at them confused, "For what?"

Kakshi smiled at him, "It's just something that Gai wishes to speak. But, you have a mission now, right?"

Yamato shrugged, "Actually, Tsunade wanted me to secretly bring her in more sake… You know how Shizune can be."

Kakashi nodded, then patted Yamato's shoulder, " _Right_ … anyways, don't forget to fix my roof from my house, it's a bit of a mess~!"

"N-Now?! I have to do the mini mission Tsunade-sama told me to! I'll be on my way after this..!"

Kakashi grinned, "Thank you! Oh, and don't worry about us bothering Sakura and Naruto… we are grown men, who have reasonable stuff better to do."

Yamato gave a small nod, "Yes, I'm glad you all finally understood. Anyways, I'll see you later."

After he turned around, Kakashi went inside the Hokage's office to see Tsunade listening closely to Gai's request.

"…So, perhaps, if you could let Sakura have a small break? Her and Naruto just have to be together!" Gai finished.

Tsunade sighed as she stood up and turned around, her back towards them, "Sakura is the best doctor here. Perhaps even better than I. We cannot have her foolishly have random breaks. She just had one about two days ago."

Gai looked down and clenched his fists. Asuma sighed along with Kakashi. They knew this would happen… But suddenly the lights in the office began to dim as Gai looked up, looking like he just came back from the 80s.

Suddenly he began to sing the chorus of "What About Love" by Heart.

 _What about love_

 _Don't you want someone to care about you_

Tsunade watched in horror as Gai began to sing all dramatically, "ARE YOU SINGING THIS BECAUSE IT SAYS, 'WHAT ABOUT LOVE?'?!"

Kakashi and Gai backed away slowly, until they hit the wall.

 _What about love_

 _Don't let it slip away_

 _What about love_

Gai jumped on her desk and sang while leaning back dramatically. Tsunade frowned and yelled, "This isn't even about me!"

 _I only want to share it with you_

 _You might need it someday-_

"Are you saying, you're in love with me?!" Tsunade frowned as she unplugged the cassette player from the wall, causing everything to be back to normal.

Gai stopped and crossed his arms, "Hey! I was on a roll here!"

Tsunade sighed and placed her hand on her forehead, "Fine already! But only tomorrow… Sakura is very busy. But I'm not so sure about Naruto. You'll have to ask Jiraiya for permission."

Kakshi cleared his throat, "Actually, I'm training with him tomorrow."

Tsunade nodded her head towards Kakashi, "There you go. Now, if there is anything else that is important, then please… I have a lot of work to do…"

Gai grinned as he walked out mouthing at Kakashi and Asuma, "Told you!"

But he came back quickly to say, "Oh, thank you, Tsunade-sama!"

Tsunade sighed and waved her hand, "It's alright."

After giving their respectable goodbyes, Kakashi said to Gai, "So, who's gonna go first?"

Asuma pulled out another cigarette, "I'm just gonna watch you two fail… then I'll show you who the real expert will be."

Kakashi scoffed, "Alright. You're on… In that case, I'll go first. See you all tomorrow early."

With that, he disappeared.

Asuma and Gai looked at each other and gave a nod.

"I'll see you, tomorrow then." Asuma said while lighting up the cigarette, "Kakashi's place…"

Gai gave another nod, "Right!"

With that, Asuma disappeared, leaving Gai alone.

He chuckled to himself as he headed towards the training grounds.

' _I've got the_ _ **perfect**_ _plan for this… hm hm, ah, yes. With this, the power of youth will be overflowing!'_

Meanwhile, back that the office with Tsunade, she grinned to herself. Shizune walked in and said, "Tsunade…? Why the grin?"

Tsunade got up and said, "Kakashi, Gai, and Asuma are going to have a mini competition to see who can get Sakura and Naruto together. And I'm going to bet on who… Want to join?"

Shizune pondered for a bit, "But what about the Akatsuki! And you have no money to bet!"

Tsunade laughed, "Don't worry about it! I bet on… Asuma. He seems to be good at those things. I mean, he has a girlfriend."

Sighing with defeat, Shizune said, "Fine. I guess I'll have my bet on… Gai. He seems enthusiastic about pretty much everything."

They both looked at each other and said at the same time, "Deal. And we have no faith in Kakashi…"

* * *

Kakashi made it to his house and saw that his roof was still a mess.

"Oh, well. Yamato will know what to do."

"And what are you going to pay him?"

Kakashi turned around and saw Pakkun sitting there on his bed.

"How did you get summoned?" Kakashi asked as he sat next to Pakkun.

Pakkun sighed, "You forgot? You summoned me about an hour ago… I was waitin' for you!"

Still in thought, Kakashi slowly shook his head, "Nope. I don't remember. But, now that you're here, why not help me?"

Pakkun rolled his eyes, "Yea, that's why we signed the contract…"

Before Kakashi could say anything else, there was a knock at the door. Getting up, Kakashi soon opened it to see Yamato standing there.

"Yamato…" Kakashi said as he signaled him to get in.

"Right, where is the damaged part?" Yamato asked quickly, "I was just informed of a new upcoming mission and must pack after this."

Kakashi crossed his arms, "Really? Where are you going?"

"To go and help out with Anko and Sai, along with Shino. It's not immediate help, but they would like some assistance…"

Kakashi then showed him where the problem was and laid back on his bed reading.

"Don't you think you should help?" Pakkun said as he lay next to him.

Kakshi's eyes grew wide, "N-No way!"

"What?" Pakkun asked, ready and on full alert.

"Wait… interesting…"

Pakkun rolled his eyes and sighed. Kakashi really needed to put down his books…

It was all quiet until they heard Yamato quickly call out, "All done, Kakashi-senpai! I must go now!"

Kakashi looked up to see Yamato standing there, "It was a bit harder, but its all fixed."

"Yea, thanks…" Kakashi smiled, "Well, then, you won't be coming back for a few days, right?"

Yamato looked at him suspiciously, "Why? Are you planning to rob my home or something? I have to tell you, I don't have much."

Kakashi shook his head, "Of course not… just wondering…"

' _You can't ruin our plans with your speech anymore hee hee.'_ Kakashi thought giggly.

Yamato slowly stepped away seeing him like this, "You've never acted like this… but just to be safe, I have to go. Goodbye!"

Without another second, Yamato disappeared.

Pakkun looked up to see Kakashi and sighed, "You've creeped him out, Kakashi…"

Kakashi got up and began to ponder a bit.

"What?" Pakkun followed him around, "Are you seriously planning to rob his house?"

Kakashi frowned, "Of course not… I'm just thinking…"

' _What would Love Tactics do…?'_ He thought. But he quickly shook his head, _'Probably something not rated in this fic…'_

After giving up, Kakashi looked at Pakkun and gave a defeated sigh.

"What should I do, Pakkun?" Kakashi asked as he sat on his sofa.

Pakkun sat next to him, "What are you talking about?"

"I want to beat them..." He sighed, "I'm not that type of person, but it sort of irritated me when Asuma said that..."

Pakkun sighed, "Why you asking me? What did Asuma say? All I know is to track and fight... And sometimes get into trouble."

Kakashi's eyes grew wide as he turned to face Pakkun, "You're right! That's what I'll do...!"

"Do what, Kakashi?" Pakkun asked a bit taken back.

Kakashi grinned, "I'll have to summon all of you guys first..."

Without letting Pakkun saying anything else, Kakashi began to cut his thumb, and then summoned the rest.

Soon all 8 dogs were in his room.

"Hey, what do you need?" asked Urushi.

Kakashi cleared his throat and spoke out, "Starting tomorrow on, every single one of you will become normal dogs... Only for tomorrow, though."

Bull wagged his tail a bit, while still keeping the same face.

Pakkun stepped in front of Kakashi and said, "What? What are we? We are ninken, not your average dog..."

Kakashi sighed as he went to the kitchen, "If you cooperate..."

They all waited a bit anxious to what he might say.

Kakashi went towards the refrigerator and pulled something else. As he made it back, he finished, "I'll let you eat my leftovers!"

They all sighed in disappointment.

Pakkun spoke "At least try a little harder..."

Kakashi sighed, "Alright, I'll buy you all any treat, ok?"

Ūhei looked over at Bisuke and said, "You're going to give us a BISCUIT?"

Bisuke sighed "Please don't start."

Kakashi nodded, "So that settles-"

"Hey!" they all said at once.

Pakkun got on top of a table to be closer to Kakashi's face, "We didn't agree on anything yet..."

"Alright... So do you agree...? Or...?"

Pakkun and the others gave an evil grin.

"Send us to the spa..." they all said, "And feed us treats, too!"

Kakashi got out his wallet and began to count his money nervously, "The spa? I thought dogs hated to get wet or washed!"

They all chuckled evilly, "Did you forget? We are ninken!"

Kakashi sighed in defeat and putting away his wallet, "Fine. But you'll have to do everything I say...!"

They all nodded as Kakashi began to explain his plan...

* * *

The day was getting dark and Sakura was just finishing up some surgery.

"We are all done here..." Sakura said out loud as the nurses took the patient away.

Sakura, with the help of a nurse, got off the protection gear.

Finally out of the surgery room, Sakura washed her hands and dried them.

After that, she removed her mask.

"Good job in working with you, Dr. Haruno..." A nurse said as she walked past her, smiling.

Sakura grinned, "Thank you, you did a great job today."

A voice from behind called out for Sakura, "Sakura!"

Turning around, Sakura saw Shizune walking up to her, "I see you have finished for today..."

Sakura shook her head, "I still need to check on other patients..."

Shizune blinked a bit, "But, the surgery took more time, don't you think you should rest?"

Drying her hands, Sakura spoke, "There's still a lot more work to do... Anyways, did you need something?"

Nodding, Shizune said, "Yes, Tsunade-sama would like a word with you... She thought you would head home after the surgery... So, as soon as you can, could you go speak to her? I'll inform her you will meet her when you are finished."

Sakura's eyes grew wide a bit and shook her head, "I'll go right away if it's important."

Shizune shook her head, "I'm not sure what she wants to tell you. I would go now just in case, but that's just me."

Nodding Sakura agreed, "Then, I should go now."

Shizune waited for Sakura to finish drying her hands. After she was done, Sakura followed Shizune to Tsunade's office.

Once there, Shizune knocked on the door.

"Tsunade-sama? We are coming in."

Tsunade looked up from her desk to see Sakura and Shizune entering the room.

"Did you call, Tsunade-sama?" Sakura asked.

Tsunade gave a nod, "Yes, it's really quick, though."

Sakura listened carefully at what she would say next.

"You have the rest of the week off..."

Sakura's eyes grew wide in shock, "Rest of the week? But what about the patients? I already had a day off two days ago! Is something going on?"

Tsunade stood up and walked up to Sakura smiling. She placed her hand on Sakura's shoulder and said, "It's just that, you've been working hard... And you should know what too much stress can cause. And if anything should happen, you know, you come back and help."

Sakura sighed in defeat, "Alright... I guess a small break could do well... But what about you?"

Tsunade looked away for a bit and said, "I'll take my break after you..."

Sakura moved her hair to the side and said, "Ok then, I guess I'll go on after I finish some work..."

She slowly excused herself and headed out the door. But before exiting, she turned her head to see Tsunade and Shizune watching her leave.

Taking a deep breath, she headed out.

 _'Why all the breaks...?'_ Sakura thought to herself as she continued towards the hospital, _'Work is the only thing that keeps me distracted... Most of the time.'_

Shizune looked at Tsunade and said, "Didn't you tell Gai and them that Sakura would only have tomorrow off?"

Tsunade nodded while crossing her arms, giving a smirk, "Yea, but I know they won't leave her alone… so I made them think that Sakura only had tomorrow off."

* * *

Ino had just finished work and had said her goodbyes to everyone.

"Sakura, I'm heading home now." Ino said tiredly.

Sakura looked up from her desk and nodded, "Ok, goodnight... Wow, you look like a mess..."

Ino gave a tired smile, "Yea, work has been... Pretty hard..."

 _'Actually, I've been stressing out over the plan to bring you two back together...'_ Ino thought.

Sakura got up and hugged her friend, "Go sleep. I won't be around for the rest of the week..."

Ino hugged back, but her eyes grew wide as she looked at Sakura's face, "What?"

Sakura shrugged, "It looks like Tsunade wants me to have a small break. You know, too much stress and stuff... But I think you need it more than me. If you want, I'll go and ask her to-"

"No!" Ino quickly yelled. Sakura looked at her suspiciously.

"I mean..." Ino began, trying to cover her quick response, "What I meant was, I don't really need a break. You are a very busy doctor and need as much rest as possible."

Sakura crossed her arms and said in a low voice, "If you say so... Are you sure you're ok?"

Ino nodded, "Yea, I'm fine! Oh, look at the time, I best be goin' now!"

"What-?"

"Bye, Sakura!" Ino said as she quickly went out the door.

 _'She has the rest of the week off? I have to come up with something fast...!'_

She checked out and went out of the hospital. She pondered a bit as she was thinking.

 _'What to do... What to do...'_

As she was near her house, she randomly saw sakura petals filling the atmosphere.

Ino looked around confused, "What the-?"

"Ino!"

Turning around, she saw in disgust Lee standing behind her.

She still wasn't over the fact that Lee had turned into a shoujo character... His eyes looked so detailed and sparky.

"Um, hey Lee!" Ino said while waving away some sakura petals.

"You don't have to worry much!" Lee grinned, "Gai-sensei said he will help us with this plan! He said he personally requested Tsunade-sama to give Sakura a break."

Ino sighed in relief, "That's good! So he's going to- wait. Why did you tell him!? What if Naruto finds out!"

Lee quickly shook his head, "No, wait! He is an honorable man who stays to his word! Gai-sensei will never tell anyone!"

Little did they know, he told Asuma and Kakashi.

"He is a man who will solve this problem with passion and seriousness!"

He took it as challenge with the others to prove who the best Love Expert is.

"He doesn't need anyone's help!"

He did.

"Gai-sensei's the best!"

He is.

Ino blinked a bit after hearing Lee's heroic speech of Gai. She slowly nodded, "Ok...! I see that everything is under control, then... I'll go check on Sakura after work to see all the work done. Make sure everything is in order, ok?"

Lee nodded, "Of course, Ino. I just wanted to inform you."

Ino smiled, "Yea, thank you, Lee!"

 _'Ok, so now I can calm down a bit... If what Lee says it's true, then I don't have anything to worry about!'_

After saying goodbye, Ino went home and had a less "stressful" night.

* * *

The next morning, Sakura woke up feeling a bit relaxed. She sat on her bed and looked out the window. It was already a bit late, around 10 AM.

"Whoa… I really needed some sleep…" Sakura said as she stretched her arms a bit. Blinking a bit, Sakura got up, "What should I do…? Maybe go to train, and then maybe to the spa… wow, there really isn't much for me to do…"

Sakura slowly walked over to the restroom and brushed her teeth. After then, she looked at herself in the mirror and touched her face a bit.

She pinched both cheeks and crossed her eyes while sticking out her tongue.

"Oh god, I'm so bored I'm making weird faces…" Sakura sighed as she headed towards the kitchen.

She decided to make herself some toast.

' _I'm going to train today… it's good for my body! Damn it, Sakura! Stop thinking of health for a damn second…'_

"Yea, I'm still gonna train." Sakura said to herself as she took a big bite off of her toast.

It was all quiet as she slowly chewed her food. She was then thinking of new ways to get stronger, when there was a knock at the door.

She quickly gulped her food and slowly walked up to the door, "Who is it…?"

"Sakura! It's me, Kakashi." The voice said on the other side of the door.

Sakura's eyes grew wide as she went to find a hoodie to put over her tank top.

"Hold on a minute!" Sakura said as she was walking back to the door, all ready.

Sakura opened the door to see Kakashi standing there while he gave a small wave, "Yo."

Sakura blinked a bit and slowly said, "Is there something wrong, Kakashi-sensei?"

Kakashi placed his hands in his pocket and then with one hand, scratch the back of his head.

"You see, Sakura... I'm off on a sudden mission, but in need of your help."

Sakura watched him, prepared to be asked about the mission.

"Tsunade asked me to go with you?" Sakura said while mentally starting to list all the things needed for the mission.

Kakashi's eyes grew wide as he defenselessly placed his hands in front of him, "No, that's not it, Sakura."

He looked behind him to see Gai and Asuma terribly hiding behind some giant pots.

 _'Ninjas...'_ he thought while sweat-dropping.

Gai frowned from his hiding spot and elbowed Asuma, "What's he waiting for! Kakashi said this would be the best idea ever!"

Asuma pulled out a cigarette and lit it, "Dunno, so far, you two are losing."

"I haven't even gone!"

Asuma inhaled his cigarette and slowly let it out, "You don't have to go, I can already see it fail."

Before Gai could say anything, Asuma stopped him and pointed towards Kakashi.

"You need what?" Sakura asked in disbelief.

"I need you to babysit my dogs..." Kakashi asked again, "They need someone to take care of them."

Sakura crossed her arms, "Aren't they ninken? And don't you need them for your mission?"

Kakashi sighed, "No, not for this mission. Please, only for today."

Sakura placed her hand on her forehead, "This is so weird... But, alright I guess..."

Kakashi smiled, "Thank you Sakura! I've got the list here and what time and place they should be at. Also, they love the walks."

Sakura took the list and then gasped when Kakashi pulled out all 8 leashes, "Yea forgot about these."

He handed it to her and said, "Come to my place when you're ready."

He quickly vanished, leaving Sakura speechless.

 _'God damn it, Kakashi!'_ She frowned as she walked in her house to get ready.

Meanwhile, Kakashi appeared behind Gai and Asuma.

"You are the worst ninjas ever." Kakashi crossed his arms, "Anyone could see you."

"Ha! Now that was your plan, Hatake?" Gai smirked, "Sounds bad."

Kakashi sighed, "It's only the beginning. Now for the other part."

He began to run towards the training grounds. Gai and Asuma quietly followed behind.

As soon as they made it, Kakashi saw Naruto waiting impatiently for him.

"About time!" Naruto said a bit annoyed while crossing his arms.

Kakashi smiled, "Sorry, I was just told I will be on a mission."

Naruto's eyes grew wide, "For real? Is it... With the Akatsuki...?"

Kakashi shook his head, "Nah, it's so simple I may be back in an hour or so! But since we cannot train today, I'll have to ask you a favor."

Naruto shrugged, "Um, sure ok! So, what's it gonna be?"

"Please babysit my dogs."

Naruto's eyes grew wide as he gave the most confused look, "What-?"

"Go to my place to start the job! Oh, and take them for a walk along with a spa, k thanks."

With that he disappeared, leaving an annoyed Naruto.

"Gah!" Naruto yelled as he started to walk towards Kakashi's house.

Kakashi appeared next to Asuma and Gai and said, "Now we watch them kiss kiss fall in love..."

Asuma got up and sighed, "This sucks! Kakashi why didn't you try harder?"

"Hey! This is going to work, trust me." Kakashi said as he pulled out his book.

Gai grabbed Asuma and Kakashi's arms and yelled, "Off to see Kakashi's work!"

* * *

Sakura had just arrived to Kakashi's house and slowly opened the door.

"Whoa it's opened?" She said to herself as she pushed it open even more.

Once fully inside, she saw all 8 dogs sitting in front of her, waiting.

Sakura blinked for a minute and then slowly said, "Hey... I'm going to 'dogsit' you all..."

None of the dogs spoke, some just wagged their tail.

 _'Oh my god they can talk, why aren't they responding?!_ '

Sakura looked over at Pakkun and said, "Pakkun! Say something, please! It's driving me insane..."

Pakkun just barked.

Sakura blinked a bit and rubbed her eyes.

"What has Kakashi-sensei done to you?"

Trying not to let it bother her, Sakura got out her list that Kakashi gave her.

She began to walk towards the living room with everyone following.

"First things first..." Sakura read, "I'm the realist?"

 _'I... Don't say anything.'_

Step one said to feed them all their breakfast.

Sakura looked at the clock and saw that it was pretty late for breakfast.

"Oh, poor things...! Haven't eaten all morning!" Sakura said as she went to search for the dog food.

"Where is it?"

Pakkun watched Sakura search for the food. He knew Kakashi didn't have any.

 _'Why did he write that if he doesn't have food?_ ' he thought. But an idea popped into his head.

He walked up behind Sakura and barked.

Sakura turned around, "Huh? Yes, Pakkun?"

Pakkun gave an evil smirk and ran towards the fridge.

Sakura nodded as she understood, "He gives you normal food? Anything?"

All 8 dogs barked at her question.

"Ok, if you... Pft bark so...!" Sakura grinned and turned to see the dogs' reaction to her pun, only to be disappointed. They all had the look of being so done.

Giving a nervous chuckle, Sakura slowly opened the fridge.

But that was probably the biggest mistake all day.

All of the dogs, at once, jumped towards the fridge and grabbed whatever they could.

"Hey! Wait!" Sakura said as she pushed her way towards the fridge.

They were making a bunch of mess all over the place.

Bull got out leftover chicken and began to wave it with his mouth. All of the icky stuff flew everywhere.

Pakkun got some spaghetti and spilled it on the floor, causing Sakura to slip and fall, "Ah!"

The others spilled juice, some cake, other meats and who knows what.

They all ate it quickly while Sakura stared in horror.

"They must have not eaten in days!" She yelled.

She was still sitting on the floor and she felt orange juice spill onto her from the counter above.

"Ahh! Bisuke!" She looked up and saw him nibbling on some chicken Bull left.

Turning her head to see Bull pulling on a huge pot filled with who knows what, Sakura gasped as she quickly, on her knees and hands, went to stop him.

"Bull! No! Don't-!"

All of it spilled on top of her, making her look like a mess.

"Why does he have so much food!?" She yelled.

The dog wouldn't stop making a huge mess in the kitchen.

She then heard the door ring. And her hopes and dreams went soaring.

"Yes!" she said as she got up quickly, "I'll ask whoever is at the door to help me!"

She ran towards the door and opened it, yelling, "Please help me with those dogs!"

Naruto stood there blinking a bit.

"S-Sakura? What happened to you?"

They then heard a loud crash of plates being broken.

Sakura sighed, "Kakashi isn't here. Now if you'll excuse me..."

Before she would close the door, Naruto stopped it with his hand, "Wait! I'm supposed to take care of his dogs!"

Sakura frowned, "Then why'd he ask me?"

Hiding behind some building, Kakashi's eyes grew wide in horror, "What have they done to Sakura...? My house...? I told them to go easy!"

Asuma laughed and said, "Well guess you could say... You're in the dog house."

Gai blinked a bit and said, "But that doesn't-"

"Just roll with it."

Naruto was about to ask her if he could help, when Bull ran past Sakura and outside.

"Bull!" both Naruto and Sakura yelled.

Sakura looked at Naruto and said, "You stay here! I'll go get Bull!"

But before anyone could agree, the rest of the dogs ran after Bull.

Sakura's eyes grew wide as she ran after them, "Come back!"

Naruto ran after her, "Wait! You come back!"

Kakashi stood up and glared at his ninken running around the place like rabid dogs.

In a threatening and dark voice, he mumbled, "They are so not going to get their spa."

* * *

 **Yooooo! I'm soo sorry for not uploading! I had a surprise visit from family and had to help attend them! I didn't have time to get on… Hopefully you all liked this chap…! xx**


	8. Not so Very Youthful

Ch8: Not so Very Youthful

Sakura ran after them while still all dirty. She then stopped to see if she could see them.

"Sakura!" Naruto said as he caught up to her, "We must find the dogs!"

Sakura nodded, "Yes, obviously. Wait, Kakashi gave me these leashes. Take half."

Naruto got four and Sakura kept the rest.

After Sakura ran towards the other direction, Naruto activated his shadow clones.

"Shadow clone jutsu!" he yelled as about ten of Narutos appeared.

"After those ninken!" the real Naruto yelled as they all ran dramatically in slow motion.

Meanwhile, Sakura couldn't stop thinking of Naruto.

 _'He seems normal... Looks like he really doesn't care if I go out with anyone.'_

She frowned as she looked around for any signs of the dogs.

Sakura ran around the corner and saw Guruko and Pakkun eating some food that was on the floor.

"Pakkun!" Sakura yelled as she ran up to them. The people around her gasped in surprise and disgust as they quickly moved out the way.

Pakkun and Guruko nodded at each other and ran in opposite directions, causing Sakura to angrily scream, "Get back here, Pakkun! Guruko!"

Seeing that both were leaving in opposite directions, she hesitated.

"I'm gonna have to do this…" She said as she quickly summoned another two other hers.

"You go after Guruko!" Sakura said to Sakura #3. The other nodded as she ran with a leash in her hand after Guruko.

The second was assigned to search for any other dogs.

Sakura glared at Pakkun running away and jumping on buildings, causing panic.

" **PAAAKKKUUUNNN!** " Sakura yelled angrily as she ran after him.

' _Ah, shit!_ ' Pakkun thought, _'Maybe I shouldn't've gotten too carried away… She seems pissed.'_

But before he could jump out towards another building, he felt his leg get pulled and was suddenly pulled down with a lot of force.

Opening his eyes, he yelped to see a very pissed off Sakura.

" _ **Pakkun…**_ " She said in a threatening voice while clipping on his leash on his collar.

Pakkun sighed as he let himself get picked up by Sakura.

"Now to get Guruko!" She said as she ran with him.

Meanwhile, Sakura #3 had finally caught Guruko.

"Finally! Whoops, can't get too far or else I'll disappear!" She said as she leashed him up.

"Is it really you?"

Turning around, her eyes grew wide with tears falling down, filled with overwhelming joy, "Naruto#2!"

Both dropped their dogs and ran in slow motion towards each other while extremely dramatic music played in the background.

Guruko sighed as he sat down waiting for them to be finished.

Uhei was caught by Naruto#2, but was dropped, so he sat down next to Guruko.

"So, what else are we supposed to do?" He asked in boredom, "They are together now, so do we just…?"

"It's not the real them, baka…" Guruko sighed, "We have to bring the real ones together."

Sakura #3 cried as she pulled Naruto #2 into a big tight hug, "It feels as if I haven't seen you in forever! I've missed you so much!"

He hugged back tightly and grinned, "I just couldn't stop thinking of you…! You're always on my mind."

"Oh, Naruto #2!" Sakura #3 said happily as she was going to lean in for a kiss.

"SAKURA!" The real one came in to interrupt the scene.

Naruto #2 placed his arms around Sakura #3, "Hey! Why aren't you two back together? We're like dying to be together."

Sakura frowned, "You know nothing between the real Naruto and I."

Sakura walked over to grab Guruko and Uhei.

"Where is Sakura #2?" Sakura asked.

"Walked too far away…" Uhei mumbled.

Sakura sighed and walked away with three dogs on her leash.

Just then, Naruto ran up to Sakura, "Hey! I caught Akino and Shiba!"

Sakura nodded and took the leashes, "Thanks…"

Just then, the rest of his clones, except for Naruto #2, came in with the remaining dogs.

"We caught 'em boss!" They all said in union.

Naruto grinned, "Alright! Now to deactivate you all! Thanks so much!"

But just after he deactivated, they all heard a loud scream.

Both turned around to see Sakura #3 crying on the floor, "Noooo!"

Naruto ran up to her, "Hey, what happened?!"

Sakura crossed her arms, "Nothing."

And without another second to pass, Sakura #3 disappeared.

Sakura grabbed the rest of the leashes and turned her head towards Naruto.

"Um, thanks for your help." She mumbled as she began to walk the dogs back towards Kakashi's place.

Naruto frowned and grabbed Sakura's hand, "Wait."

Kakashi, Asuma, and Gai all waited anxiously to what wwould happen next.

"Did you see those clones?" Asuma said, "They have feelings…"

Gai's eyes grew wide and said, "Maybe this wasn't such a bad idea… They seem to be doing ok."

' _Damnit!'_ He thought, _'My rival is going to win!'_

Kakashi gave a sigh of relief, "Alright good…"

Sakura looked up to see Naruto holding her hand, "Yes?"

' _Oh no…'_ She thought, _'My heart is beating fast again… just like the times before.'_

Naruto blushed a bit and quickly said, "What I meant was that, you can't take care of all these dogs by yourself."

Sakura frowned a bit, "Yes I can."

He gave a knowing grin, "Then why were you covered in food and begging for help?"

She sighed and gave him half of the leashes, "Fine."

The ninken listened to this and all nodded to each other. Without another word, they all began to run, dragging Sakura and Naruto on the floor.

"Ahh!" They both screamed as dirt covered their face and mouth.

"Pakkun!" Sakura yelled as she got up while still being pulled.

She looked next to her to see Naruto running at their speed, "Bull!"

But they suddenly stopped in the middle of a weird part of town.

"What are we doing here…?" Sakura asked while brushing the dirt off of her skirt.

It was considered the most "romantic" part of Konoha. Couples were everywhere and the place was covered in romantic stuff.

Naruto looked around and shook his head, "We can't be here."

Sakura looked over at him and gave a sigh, feeling a bit disappointed, "Yea, let's just bring these guys back towards Kakashi. He might be home already."

But suddenly the ninken ran in towards a building.

"Whoa!" Sakura cried out, "Calm down!"

The place looked like some giant kitchen.

The main chef gasped and them and yelled, "What do we have here!?"

Sakura bowed down and quickly said, "We are so sorry, we will be leaving soon."

But the chef smiled as she clapped her hand along with the rest of the employees.

"What…?" Naruto said a bit confused.

"Congratulations!" The chef grinned, "This couple is the winner for bringing in the most dogs!"

"What?!" They both yelled.

The chef gave them a slip of paper and grinned, "You are the winner for getting the most dogs! Now hand them over."

Sakura frowned, "Wait, hand them over? First of all, we never entered no concert. Second of all, why do you want the dogs? We aren't going to give them to you!"

The chef gave a glare towards Sakura, "Don't you know? How the meat tastes so good? It isn't regular meat… its dog meat! Now hand them over you signed the contract!"

The ninken's eyes grew wide.

' _Kakashi what the hell did you do?!'_ They all thought. Kakashi had told them to bring those two here, because they had "won" a "romantic dinner" or some bullshit. This wasn't in their contract.

Sakura glared at her and yelled, "Like hell we are handing these dogs over! These are ninken!"

"Even better!" The chef angrily yelled.

Naruto then said, "That's enough. Come on Sakura, let's go."

"No, you don't!" The chef yelled as she stood in the way, "Hand over the dogs."

"Move out the way, lady!" Pakkun yelled annoyed.

The chef gasped, "T-They really are ninken!"

"And we are real ninjas…" Sakura sighed and pushed her way out.

Naruto followed behind and the Chef came in running after them, "Wait! I thought you were all bluffing! Oh my god, you could have easily killed me! Ninjas…! Let me repay you!"

Sakura looked over at Naruto, who looked a bit annoyed, "Let's get out of here."

Kakashi and Gai watched the Chef run after them while yelling out, "Free coupons! No dogs! I swear it was all a joke!"

"What is she talking about, Kakashi?" Gai asked.

Kakashi slapped his forehead, "Oh my god, I must have done something stupid. Where's Asuma, by the way?"

Asuma appeared behind them and chuckled, "Well, Kakashi, seems that you lost. This was, by far worse, the worst idea to ever come to you. Stick to being a ninja."

Kakshi frowned, "Shut up, I'm not done."

Asuma and Gai looked at him a bit confused, "What?"

Kakashi chuckled, "Don't you know? That little kids love dogs!"

Just then, a swarm of little kids came running towards Naruto and Sakura.

"Little kids?!" They both yelled.

A whole bunch of kids came over and squealed in joy to seeing so many dogs.

"Can we pet them, mister!?" They yelled excitedly.

Sakura looked over at Naruto, who was grinning while nodding, "Of course! They don't bite!"

Sakura grinned at them and gave a sigh, "Ah, they are so cute!"

But a little girl saw Sakura and screamed, "Ah!"

Sakura cried a bit, "But they seem to hate me…!"

Naruto grinned, "No they don't… you just give the wrong vibe."

She frowned, "What's wrong with me? I smile and some run away… are they scared of my forehead or something?"

Naruto was about to tell her that she was perfect and that there was nothing wrong with having a forehead like that. But he stopped and looked around.

' _You can't go on. You must stop.'_

A little boy came and smiled at Naruto, "Is this your and girlfriend's dogs?"

Sakura quickly said, "Ah! No, he… he isn't my boyfriend."

The little boy frowned a bit, "Yes he is! You have pink hair and he has yellow hair!"

"It's blond-" Naruto began, but was cut off by the little boy, "And you two look like mommy and daddy!"

' _Oh my god this is awkward.'_ Sakura gulped while nervously smiling to him.

The boy continued, "My dad also has yellow hair! My mom has pink hair, too! Well, it's the weird pink."

Pakkun saw this and lay on Sakura's lap and then on his back. Sakura rolled her eyes and then petted his stomach while the little boy watched.

"Can I pet him?" He asked anxiously.

Sakura nodded as the little boy petted Pakkun's head. But it was abit too rough, even for Pakkun.

' _Ow! Stupid kid, he- REALLY!? Don't pull my ear!'_ Pakkun thought.

The little boy laughed and then looked at Naruto, "When did you get all these dogs? Where do you two live? Can I come see them every day?"

' _What is it with this kid?'_ Naruto thought as he said, "Actually, these aren't really our dogs."

Sakura interrupted him, "These are our teacher's dogs."

The little boy's eyes grew wide, "Whoa! So can I go to your sensei's house and see them every day? Wait, so you don't have any kids?! I want a little brother, but my mom is going to have a girl!"

Sakura nervously laughed, "Really?"

Naruto didn't feel right so he was going to say he had to go, when Konohamaru came in, "Hey yo Naruto!"

He ran up to them, but then stopped, "What's this? I thought you broke up with her!"

Sakura sighed and leaned back, listening to all the kids talk at the same time.

"I WANT FOUR BROTHERS!"

"Ma'am, can I pet the big black dog?"

"These dogs smell funny!"

"Naruto, answer me!"

"Ew! Dog breath!"

"Is that food on you, ma'am? Lookie, lookie! That dog is licking your leg!"

Sakura couldn't take it anymore. She looked down to see Akino licking her leg.

' _Why did I agree to this?'_ Sakura thought as she stood up.

The little boy from before frowned a bit, "Hey! You didn't answer me! Can I have fur brothers?"

Sakura looked at him and with a painful tiresome look she nodded, "Yes… go ask your parents…"

"But they don't want to! Where do you get brothers? How much do they cost?"

Sakura's eye started to twitch a bit, "T-They can't be bought."

"Are you sure? My dad said they bought my sister at the baby store! Let's go! Maybe they have brothers in there!"

Konohamaru laughed at him and said, "Hey! You can't buy babies! You gotta make them!"

Sakura and Naruto's eyes grew wide and quickly went to cover his mouth, "Shut up!"

Before the little boy could say anything, Sakura grabbed the collars and said, "Oh! Well you just **look** at the time. Have to go now! See you all later!"

She left even before Naruto could say another word.

The little boy looked up at Naruto and said, "Is your girlfriend mad at you?"

Naruto continued to watch Sakura leave and said without thinking, "What? No, she's just… tired."

Realizing what he had just said, Naruto frowned at the boy, "I-I mean she's not my girlfriend anymore!"

Konohamaru laughed and said, "Yea right! You always think of her! Whooo Whoooo! Mua mua!"

Naruto sighed and began to walk away, "That's enough, Konohamaru. I'm going home."

Kakashi groaned and stood up, "Fine. I admit I am shit at this…"

Gai patted his back and said, "It's ok. But now… It's my turn! Hyah!"

Asuma shrugged and followed Gai with Kakashi following a bit disappointed.

/-/-/-

Sakura made it to Kakashi's house and then she realized, "Oh no! I didn't take them to the spa…"

Pakkun sighed and said, "That's alright. It doesn't matter."

She glared at him, "Why are you talking all of a sudden now?"

Pakkun gave a small yelp, "I-It wasn't our idea! Kakashi's the one who-"

"Who had to go on a mission." Kakashi said quickly as he reached Sakura.

He gulped, "What happened here?"

Sakura crossed her arms and said, "You tell me. These aren't ninken. Why didn't they act like normal dogs? They acted like rabid animals! They spilled food all over me!"

Kakashi quickly nodded, "Yea, and what about Naruto? Are you two going out now?"

Sakura scoffed, "What? It's still the same, he only sees me as a friend. There's nothing left."

Not wanting to talk about it anymore, she dismissed herself and headed on home.

Kakashi sighed and then glared at his ninken, "No spa."

"What? Awww!" They all groaned, "We did our job to act like dogs!"

"Rabid dogs! What the hell is all this mess!" Kakashi sighed as fake tears slipped his eyes, "It was supposed to be like in that one part in the Make out tactics!"

Pakkun sweat dropped, "What?"

"The part where the girl is walking her dog and the guy comes in and they are all like, 'oh hey!' and then fall in love thanks to dogs."

Pakkun and the rest all shook their head in disappointment. Kakashi really was a lost hope.

"You still owe us that spa."

-/-/-/-

Sakura had made it to her house and headed on towards the shower and stripped off and into the shower.

"Ew… I can taste it…" She sighed as she felt the water go to her mouth, bringing the food that was on her head there.

Angrily, she grabbed shampoo and scrubbed her hair.

' _He's driving me crazy!'_ She said, _'I can't be near him, he's making me lose my mind.'_

Scrubbing her arms she mumbled out loud, "I just need to take my mind off… I need to do something."

Finally getting done, she got out and dried herself, "Anything!"

She brushed her hair and looked at herself in the mirror, "Alright… what to do…"

When she went to change and finished changing into normal clothes, she sat at her bed.

"I'll just go find TenTen and hang out with her since Ino is busy…" Sakura nodded to herself.

But just as she was going to open the front door to head out, she was surprised by Gai.

"Gai-sensei!" Sakura said a bit surprised, "Did you need something?"

Gai gave his big grin and said, "Why yes! How about we go training! The power of youth needs to be overflowing in you! Let's go!"

Sakura's eyes grew wide as she said, "I was about to go ask TenTen to come train with me… But I can go with you. Will Lee or TenTen be there?"

Gai laughed and motioned her to come, "Actually, I want to teach you something. You know a special training technique!"

Sakura gave a confused look but then smiled, "Sure! So, what are we going to do?"

"Wait!" He said suddenly.

Sakura stopped in mid tracks and said, "Yes?"

Gai handed her one of his green outfits and said, "Here put this on, you will feel much better with this. It will make you feel like you are invincible!"

Sakura got the outfit and gave a sour face, "I um… _sure_."

After changing again, she came out with Gai's usual green outfit.

' _I really hope no one sees me in this._ ' She sighed as she followed Gai to the training grounds.

"Let's head on over with our hands!" He said as he got on his hands and "walked" around Sakura, "Let's go!"

Sakura hesitated, but then gave in. She got on her hands and took a while to balance.

"Now!" Gai began, "Let us race towards the training grounds! Last one there has to do one thousand situps in 5 different locations today!"

Sakura's eyes grew wide as she tried to gulp, "A thousand?! You mean five thousand?"

"Yes. Now begin!" And within a second he disappeared.

Sakura gave a determined face and quickly followed behind, with the help of her chakra.

She had finally reached up to him and continued forward while Gai laughed filled with excitement, "Alright!"

They were both tie and could soon see the training grounds. Gai then made a sharp turn making Sakura a bit confused, but then she saw why.

A whole bunch of chickens were crossing the road and she screamed, "Ahh! Get out the way!"

She closed her eyes and pushed forward. The chickens were all flapping their wings and jumping all over her.

Feathers got in her mouth, making her spit it out, "Gross!"

When she opened her eyes, she almost screamed, "Cows?!"

She had to jump in the air and jump over them, landing on her hands again. She was breathing hard as a wave of relief washed over her, "I would have gotten hurt!"

She didn't see, however, the herd of goats coming her way.

Her eyes grew wide as she screamed, "Gahh!"

' _Gai-sensei knew of this!'_ She thought angrily as she tried to push past the goats.

People kept looking at her as if she were mad, "What the?"

She bumped into a goat, which pushed her, causing her to walk backwards on her hands, "Whoa, whoa!"

But as soon as she turned around to the normal way, she was surprised to see a whole bunch of horses running up towards her.

"WHAT THE HELL!?" She yelled as she tried to head towards the side, but it was too late.

The horses ran past her and she tried to jump, but she landed on top of a horse, still on her arms. She jumped on another horse, then another.

Her arms hurt like hell, but she could not give up.

Finally making it to the floor, she quickly speeded up towards the training grounds.

After hitting herself with twigs and rocks hurting her hands, she finally made it.

She looked around to see if Gai was around. He wasn't.

She sighed and got on her feet, stretching her arms.

"Finally!" Gai yelled as he was doing pushups upside down on a branch.

Sakura's eyes grew wide, "When did you get here?!"

Gai got off and landed in front of her, "About ten minutes. I'm impressed you didn't give up! But, now you must do 5,000 situps."

Not wanting to argue, she sat down and then on her back.

Gai stood over her and smiled, "Don't worry! You won't be alone! He should be here in about…"

"GAHHH!"

Sakura looked up and gave a groan.

' _Why is he here?!'_ Sakura covered her forehead.

"Naruto!" Gai said, "You have failed to beat me here. Now, 5,000 situps!"

Naruto groaned, "Gai-sensei! Isn't there any way I can change your mind?"

Gai crossed his arms and yelled, "Why are you complaining! That's not so very youthful of you! Now both of you, begin!"

Naruto looked up to see Sakura on the floor looking at him.

He got up and said in a serious face, "I can't."

Sakura got up and said, "Yes, I can't either."

Gai grabbed both Naruto and Sakura's hands and forced them to be together, "No! You two will work together to beat me, then!"

Sakura let go of his grip and said, "I'm sorry, but not today."

Naruto did the same, but Gai said, "If you do not, then it will be a shame. I always wanted to fight the best medical kunoichi and future hokage one day."

Sakura looked up and gave a small smile, "I guess I could go for a round…"

Naruto looked at her and then back at Gai, "Well I can't."

Gai's head began to panic, _'No, don't go! If you go, Kakashi and Asuma will be laughing evilly as I have lost this challenge!'_

Sakura scoffed and crossed her arms, "Fine by me. Guess you're too much of a chicken to face Gai-sensei."

Naruto's ears twitched and turned to face her, "Me? A chicken?"

' _As much as I want to prove her wrong, I cannot stay.'_ He thought as he said, "Then, I guess I really am a chicken."

Sakura glared at him while Gai shook his head, "No hokage puts down a challenge!"

"Sorry, Gai-sensei. Maybe some other time…"

Naruto left them and Sakrua crossed her arms, "Why is he always trying to avoid me…? Sometimes he acts normal, but then he wanted to stay as far away from me as possible."

Gai sighed and said, "Guess he can't make up his mind."

Asuma and Kakashi appeared before them, surprising Sakura.

"Asuma and Kakashi-sensei?" She asked.

Asuma laughed and pushed Gai's shoulder, "You lost."

Gai crossed his arms and said, "I wasn't even trying…"

Kakashi looked at Sakura and said, "Hey, why don't we all go out and get some ice cream…?"

She placed her hands on her hips and said, "Ice cream? But what about the fight with Gai?"

Kakashi placed his hand on her shoulder and said, "We don't want him in the hospital. We know you could beat him up."

Gai laughed, "Perhaps another time, with Naruto."

Sakura gave a small smile, "Yea… But anyways, let's just go get ice cream. I've had a weird day thanks to someone's dogs."

Asuma stopped them and said to Sakura, "Why don't I make it up to you? Here take this."

Sakura grabbed the slip of paper and gasped, "This place?! It's the most expensive, most fancy place in all of Konoha!"

Kakashi and Gai glared at Asuma.

"Yes it is." Asuma smiled, "Why don't you go there at 8 and eat. Dress nicely though."

"By myself?" She said uncertain.

Asuma gave her a pat in the back, "Sure, I mean, who else is gonna afford this?"

Sakura hesitated, "So… I just show them this and-"

"And they will take care of everything! Trust me, it will be perfect."

She placed the slip of paper away and nodded, "Alright. I guess I should. Let's just get our ice cream."

 **Big mishap in the other chapter. And this chapter is sooo unedited. Everything keeps freezing! You can tell that i couldnt put the line thingy... Its freezing as I'm trying to type! (Need a new laptop...)** **Anyways** , **hope you all liked!**


	9. Wasted

CH9: Wasted

* * *

Ino could get out of work much earlier than expected. She, without any other thought, went to see Lee and how Sakura was doing.

' _I hope Gai-sensei could help Naruto and Sakura!'_ Ino thought as she rushed to Lee's place.

She had a smug grin on her face, imagining all the wonders Gai probably did.

 _Gai would stand there literally forcing these two to make up or something._

" _NOW KISSSS!"_

Shaking her head, he probably wouldn't really use force. Looking up, she finally made it to Lee's place and knocked on his door. After waiting for a while, Lee opened up and grinned as sakura petals blew away from inside.

Ino coughed as she waved the petals away, annoyed, "So, you have some news?"

Lee let her in and to her surprise, his house was covered in petals.

"Sorry…" Lee apologizes as he tried to pass the 3 foot pile of petals.

Sitting down, Ino rolled her eyes, "Anyways, what about the news! Did Gai-sensei really do it?"

Lee stood next to her and pondered a bit, "Well… Kakashi and Gai-sensei failed…."

"Kakashi!?" Ino yelled as she stood up quickly, "Kakashi-sensei knows?!"

Nodding, Lee went on, "Also Asuma-sensei. Don't worry, they have helped Gai a lot!"

Rubbing her temples together, Ino sat down again, "Alright… Alright! So, are Naruto and Sakura together?"

Shifting awkwardly, Lee nervously said, "Not exactly?"

"What?!" Ino yelled from the top of her lungs, "Not together yet?! We have three grown-ups helping!"

"Asuma-sensei still isn't done~!" Lee yelled as he covered his ears, "He's going to make Sakura and Naruto go on this fancy restaurant together!"

She immediately cooled down, "Ah… I see… When is it?"

"Tonight."

Ino got up again real quick, "What?! I-Is Sakura ready?! Is Naruto ready!? This has to be a perfect night!"

Without letting Lee continue on, Ino quickly rushed out the door while struggling to get through the piles of petals.

Crossing his arms, Lee sighed, "Time to train…"

* * *

Ino rushed around Konoha to find Sakura. She looked in all shops and all training grounds, calling her name.

"Sakura! Sakura!" Ino yelled out.

But unknown to her, Sakura was walking with Kakashi, Gai, and Asuma, all eating chocolate ice-cream.

"Thanks for the invitation." Sakura said to all of them while eating her ice cream.

"Sakura!"

Turning around, she saw Ino running towards her.

"Ino?" Sakura asked as she stared at her friend running up to her. Finally making it to Sakura, Ino dramatically held onto Sakura's shoulder, "Thank goodness I found you!"

"What is it?" Sakura asked getting a bit scared. Kakashi and the rest also looked at bit worried, preparing themselves to hear some bad news.

"We must…" Ino panted, "Get…."

Sakura shook Ino's shoulders, "Get what? Ino can you hear me?"

Ino looked up and dragged Sakura's arm, "We must get you… ready!"

"Ino, what?!"

And without another word, Ino dragged Sakura all the way to Sakura's house.

Pulling away from her grip, Sakura frowned, "Ino, what is going on? You had us all scared to death!"

"I'm sorry, Sakura!" Ino apologized as Sakura opened her door.

"But… how do you know I'll go somewhere tonight? I was going to ask you to help, but later on…" Sakura said as Ino rushed to her room.

"You have to be dressed up! Ooo! This is going to be so much fun!" Ino exclaimed happily, rushing to her best friend's closet.

"But, why so dressed up, Ino?" Sakura asked while seeing Ino pick out a dress for her in the closet.

She leaned on her bed, watching her friend choose between three dresses.

"It's only a restaurant... And I'm going alone, so no big rush." Sakura said while stretching her arms a bit.

Ino looked up and frowned, "Sakura! Only the richest get there! And important people! I'm sure some would like to speak with you since you are the best medical kunoichi ever!"

"But I'm going to be alone... Why should I go? There really is no point." Sakura sighed as she continued to watch her friend.

Ino smirked and said, "Who knows, maybe you'll find a cute guy."

 _'And by cute guy, I mean Naruto.'_ Ino thought.

Sakura closed her eyes and laid on her bed, "I don't want to do that anymore. Turns out I really can't simply replace him."

She suddenly got up and said in despair, "I've been bumping into him more often than before!"

Ino sat down next to her and slowly said, "And... What do you feel?"

"I feel as if he also wants to be with me again... I can see it... But then, he goes off being stupid saying he can't be near me. He's driving me insane!"

She covered her face and sighed, "What should I do...? Does he really hate me?"

Ino quickly went to place an arm around Sakura and shook her head, "Sakura no! Don't think that! I'm sure he's just being stupid... He'll come back."

Sakura shook her head, "It's pretty clear. I just want to get over him... I can't keep hurting myself. I can't see him looking at me as if he wants to get rid of me."

 _'Damnit!'_ Ino thought _, 'You two seem like soulmates or something! They can't stop thinking of each other...'_

Trying to change the subject, Sakura grabbed Ino's hand and said, "Please come with me?"

Smirking, Ino said, "Nope! Go on and have fun! Now... I think this dress is perfect!"

The dress was a simple one. Not too elegant or too casual. Just right and with a pretty color to it, dark red.

After about two hours, Sakura was done with her makeup and hair.

Sakura looked at the mirror and gasped. She touched her face and said, "Whoa... Is this really me?"

Ino was also a bit surprised, "I must say, I did a pretty good damn job... I can hardly recognize you!"

Sakura slowly shook her head and smiled at her friend, "It's only going to be me... But might as well! I feel so pretty...!"

Crossing her arms, Ino spoke, "Sakura, you're already pretty! You just got... Prettier!"

"Alrigt, alright. Let's get this over with." Sakura said as she waited for Ino to bring in the dress.

Ino quickly ran to the closet and came out pulling the beautiful dark red dress.

"Matches your personality!" Ino smiled.

"What?!" Sakura yelled, "My personality is not dark red. More like… "

"Yea, yea, let's do this." Ino said as she excitedly handed over the dress.

* * *

"Naruto...!" Asuma called out to him.

Naruto was sitting on a tree branch, looking at the dark sky. It was already a bit late and he just wanted to be alone now. Seeing Sakura today, being able to be near her again made him so happy, but at the same time angry with himself.

Asuma looked up to see Naruto and saw that he seemed deep in thought and a bit sad.

"Yes, Asuma-sensei...?" He mumbled.

Asuma got on the branch next to him and said, "I see you're not that happy..."

Naruto sighed, "It's nothing important..."

Asuma pulled out a cigarette and lit it up. After inhaling and then exhaling it, he said, "You hungry?"

"Hungry?" Naruto asked confused as he watched him.

Nodding, Asuma gave a pat to Natuto's shoulder, "Yea, hungry! You seem so down, why don't I give you this..."

He handed Naruto a small slip of paper. Naruto took the small slip of paper and read it. After a while he looked at Asuma with wide eyes, "This place?! It's the most expensive place ever! How did you even get this?"

Asuma laughed a bit, "I have my ways... Anyways, just go and eat there... But dress nicely..."

Naruto looked at him confused, "What? By myself? Nah, I never really liked fancy stuff..."

Asuma was beginning to get into panic mode, "T-they have the best ramen ever!"

Naruto eyed him suspiciously, "Really? Better than Ichirakus?"

Quickly, Asuma nodded, "Just give it a try!"

Naruto hesitated but then gave in, "Fine... So I just give them this?"

"Yes, they'll do everything. Oh, look! I have to go. Adios muchacho!" Asuma said as he jumped off the branch, breaking some on the way of the fall. A loud thump could be heard as Naruto heard Asuma groan in pain.

He soon disappeared leaving Naruto confused, "The hell did he just say?"

Should he go? Did he have the energy to go?

' _Free food, Naruto…._ ' His thoughts told him, _'Free. Food.'_

"I dunno…" Naruto told himself, "I just want to go home and sleep…"

' _Freeeee….. foooooddddd…..'_

Hesitating greatly, Naruto jumped off and landed on the floor, "Fine! Free food it is."

* * *

Ino grinned happily as she saw Sakura standing there in front of the mirror.

"You look like a princess!" Ino squealed as she saw her best friend do a small swirl.

"Whoa, haha!" Sakura chuckled in surprise, "I suddenly feel so much better!"

Wiping away a fake tear, Ino went on, "Come on, let's get you there!"

Sakura nodded and grabbed her matching clutch, "Ok, let's go!"

But inside, Sakura was so nervous. What if she somehow made a fool around herself? Or that some rich idiots would start to question the Hokage to her? Or insult her?

' _Just don't punch stuff…_ ' She thought as she stepped out to see Ino waiting happily for her.

Ino gave her a quick hug and said, "I'll see you after you come back! I'll be staying at your house tonight and talking care of the house!"

But Ino gave herself a smirk _, 'Not! Spying is my middle name… It's my specialty! Sort of… I just have to see this!'_

Sakura took a deep breath and said, "Ok…! I'll tell you how good the food is!" She stuck out her tongue and then saw Ino laugh.

"You're going to invite me next time, got it?" Ino laughed.

"Sure thing… Bye!" With that Sakura disappeared with a teleportation jutsu to not mess her outfit on the way.

Ino smirked to herself and untied her hair to tie it again tighter, "Time for the show."

With that, she activated to get in disguise. She transformed into a much older woman in a fancy dress and huge hat.

"Time to get Lee!" Ino said as she teleported to his place. If she was going to spy on Sakura to see how it all worked out, she would have to be with someone so her cover wouldn't be blown so easily.

She knocked on his door quickly and he opened it, "Um… can I help you?"

Ino frowned, "It's me! Ino! Quick! Transform into some older guy!"

Lee watched her suspiciously, "Ino? Why?"

"I know you also have a slip of paper…"

His eyes grew out in horror, "What…? When did you…?"

"A table for two? Come on, Lee, I saw it on the counter over there. Let's go, now!"

Lee crossed his arms, "What? No! I was saving it to take Sakura out later on! Not to be dressed up like some old person and with you!"

Ino slapped her forehead, "So we can see how Sakura and Naruto go on their surprise date!"

He looked up and quickly transformed into an older guy, who seemed pretty attractive.

"Why didn't you say so before?"

With that, both disappeared to follow Sakura and Naruto.

* * *

Sakura was just outside the restaurant. The whole place was covered with expensive decoration.

Taking a deep breath, she walked in the front door.

From the bushes, Asuma, Gai, and Kakashi all watched her enter the building.

"Alright!" Asuma said, "Everyone move near this area! And watch the wonder of a romantic dinner."

Kakshi sighed and said, "If this doesn't turn out good, I will laugh so hard…"

"Ouch!" Gai said as he shifted uncomfortably, "Move it, rival!"

"Ah, sorry…."

"Quiet!" Asuma hushed them, "Look! Naruto is going in, too!"

They all had their eyes wide open as they saw him. He looked so mature in a suit.

"Where did he get that suit? And how did he get that new hairstyle?" Asuma asked.

"Wait…" Kakashi said, "I saw Naruto walk with Jiraiya earlier. He must have helped him get all dressed up."

"DAMN RIGHT I DID!"

All turned around to see the Sanin looking over at Naruto proudly, "Look at him go…"

Gai looked at Kakashi with a questionable look.

Laughing nervously, Kakashi said, "I might have told him about this plan…"

Jiraiya hid with them and said, "Ok, so when is Sakura going to be here? When she sees Naruto she'll be wanting him back!"

Asuma looked at him and said, "Actually… that's not how it went."

Shrugging, Jiraiya went on, "Anyways, how do we see this?"

Asuma pointed up, "Over there… hopefully nothing stupid happens like awalys."

* * *

Sakura was seated on a balcony… by herself.

"Oh…" Sakura said in despair, "I'm so gonna look like a loner!"

She looked over and sighed, "At least the view is nice… and tonight is nice, too…"

With a groan, she leaned her head on the expensive table and wrapped her arms around her head.

' _Free expensive, food, Sakura…'_ Her thoughts told her.

As Sakura was in her thoughts, Ino and Lee both got a table, in the perfect view to spy on Sakura.

"She looks sad!" Lee said hiding his face with the menu the waiter had given to them.

"Shut up!" Ino said as she was also hiding behind the large menus, "Look!"

She whispered to Lee and pointed towards the entrance to see Naruto coming in.

Ino's eyes grew wide as she saw Naruto, "Damn… he looks so… hot!"

Lee elbowed her, "Hey! That's Sakura's date!"

Ino quickly whispered to Lee, "How the-? Did you do that to him? Did you give him that make over? And it wouldn't hurt to just look!"

The waiter had unfortunately, heard a very old lady, Ino in disguise, say that there was a very hot guy.

' _I don't get paid enough for this.'_ The waiter thought as he took a deep breath and stepped towards them.

"Are you ready to order?"

* * *

The gentleman in front of Naruto quietly led Naruto towards the balcony. There was only one table that was decorated in beautiful candles and bright lights out on the rail.

' _All this for food?!'_ Naruto thought as he looked around and fixed his collar, _'Damn it! This collar is too tight! Pervy Sage went too far with this!'_

But as he was fixing it, his first button popped out and fell down the stairs, "Whoops…"

"In here, Mr. Uzumaki…." The waiter said as he opened the door towards the balcony.

As he went in he stopped to see someone was already there, with their head down, buried in their arms.

He looked back to tell the waiter there must have been a mistake, when he noticed the person shift.

Slowly, he walked closer to see the person's head lift up.

Sakura opened her eyes and saw someone standing there. She blinked a few times and then realized.

"Naruto?" She said as she stood up.

Naruto watched her get up and couldn't stop staring at her. She just looked so beautiful in that dress.

"S-Sakura." Naruto said as he looked at her with a small blush, "What are you doing here?"

But Sakura was too distracted to see how Naruto looked so mature in that suit.

' _Oh my god.'_ She thought as she forced to look away, "I came here to eat. What about you?"

He shrugged, "Same here…"

Naruto knew that he shouldn't be here with her. But after seeing her, he remembered of so many things they did when they were together. And he missed that. If only tonight he could bring a bit of that back.

"What about Lee…?" Naruto asked, not looking at her as he remembered what happened days ago.

"It doesn't matter…." She sighed.

Sakura sat down and crossed her arms a bit, "I guess you are about to say you have to leave, right?"

Slowly sitting down in front her he gave her a small smile, "Um, actually I'm kind of hungry…"

She smiled a bit and said, "Yea…"

He continued to stare at her, he still couldn't believe on how pretty she was. He remembered when they were younger, how Sakura would hate herself on how she looked. Her eyes shone brightly as she looked out of the balcony.

Turning her head, she spotted him looking at her and said, "What?"

' _Damn it…'_ Naruto thought, _'I can't stay away from her anymore… I should just tell her why I was avoiding her all this time… I've been so stupid, I just can't stand another day without her…!'_

"You just look so pretty tonight." He blurted out without him thinking.

She gave him a sad smile, "I… I know what you are up to. And it won't work."

-/-/-/-/-/-

Kakashi, Gai, Asuma, and Jiraiya watched in suspense to what would happen next.

"He sat down!" Gai said happily, "I think Asuma won!"

Asuma laughed a bit, "Of course I would win! Look at them!"

Kakashi and Gai secretly admitted defeat and looked up to see Sakura standing up and pointing at Naruto angrily.

' _Never mind._ ' They both thought as Asuma watched in horror.

* * *

Ino and Lee gasped to see Sakura pointing at Naruto angrily, telling him something.

"I can't hear!" Ino said as she stuffed her mouth with food.

Lee then pulled her and whispered to her ear and Ino nodded.

"You're right…!"

With that, both Ino and Lee went to the kitchen and making sure no one was watching, transformed into waiters.

"Now," Ino said as she grabbed some menus, "We can hear everything. Lee! You will be the violin guy."

Lee's eyes grew wide, "But I don't know how to play-"

"Shut up, and let's go!" Ino said as she pulled Lee towards Naruto and Sakura.

As they reached closer, they could hear Sakura say, "You think I'm going to fall for you again? Every time I see you, I get this pain in my chest… knowing that you never loved me in the first place! And now, you come here, telling me that I look pretty tonight…"

Ino and Lee looked at each other worriedly and knew they had to do something.

Naruto stood up, "Hold on, Sakura…! You don't fully understand why I said that to you. The real reason was because-"

He was interrupted by Ino and Lee in disguise as waiters, who all barged right in.

"Right!" Ino said, "Time for the menus!"

Sakura watched them and then at Naruto, looking a bit confused.

Ino shoved the menus at Naruto and Sakura's hands. It was quite a lot actually… 8 menus on the table in total.

Lee gulped as Ino grabbed the violin she had found and shoved it to Lee's arms, "And this good sir will play the violin!"

Lee grabbed Ino's arm and whispered, "Wait! You can't just-"

But in grinned at Sakura and Naruto and said, "Ah! I will be right back!"

Quickly, she went towards the kitchen, but was interrupted by some rich person.

"Excuse me!" He said to her.

Ino stopped and said, "What."

The man gasped with the sudden "rudeness" of Ino and said, "I was going to ask for water, but since you are sooo rude… I want to speak to the owner! I want him to fire you!"

Ino's eyes grew wide and said, "Wait! No, you don't want that!"

"Yes, I do!"

' _GREAAATT'_ Ino thought annoyed, _'Fat man here is being a pain in the ass….'_

The man slammed his hand on the table and yelled, "Security! I want security! Bring in the manager! Fire this beast!"

Ino gasped and yelled, "Me!? A beast?! You son of a-"

* * *

Naruto and Sakura looked at each other and then at the menus scattered all over the table.

Not taking any more of this, Sakura got up, "I'm going home. I can't stand being near you…"

Lee's eyes shot up as he quickly played the violin… terribly.

Sakura looked at him in horror and then grabbed her clutch.

"Sakura, please wait!" Naruto said as he grabbed her hand.

But she snatched her hand away, "Please don't touch me. "

Hearing her say that made him freeze. Did she now really stop loving him? He knew he was hurting her, but did that meant she stopped loving him?

He didn't mean it, he never meant for it to be this painful.

Suddenly Lee's terrible playing screeched out, hurting their ears.

Sakura glared at him and said, "Hey, that's enough."

Lee mentally thanked her as he turned his head and his eyes grew wide to see Ino yelling at a fat man inside with everyone around.

He looked at Sakura and Naruto, who were still arguing and then at Ino who was now struggling against security.

"Let me go!" Ino yelled, "This was a set up! I was set up to this!"

The security then threw her out of the restaurant and then the manager looked at her confused and said, "She doesn't even work here!"

Meanwhile Lee couldn't think of what to do, but he knew that Asuma was here… he could sense his chakra and ran over to the balcony rails and waved his arm.

Asuma looked up and then saw Ino in disguise yelling at the restaurant.

"I…" Asuma said as he looked up to see Lee in disguise waving at him and pointing to Sakura and Naruto.

Kakashi chuckled as Gai said, "Go clean up the mess…."

Frowning, Asuma jumped up to the balcony just in time to hear Naruto ask:

"Do you still love me, then?"

Sakura stopped and breathed in deeply. Of course she still did. She had been falling in love with him ever since they had gone out. But she couldn't tell him… what would be the point. He didn't love her anymore, he had proved it more than enough times.

"No. I don't." She said as he gave a single nod.

"Ok." He said as he walked away from her and out into the chaos in the rest of the restaurant.

Asuma jumped next to Sakura and signaled Lee to go and find Ino. Lee nodded and went after Ino to help her along with Naruto.

Sakura felt regret. She could have just told him the truth, but he would probably tell her to forget about her. Asuma walked up to Sakura and sighed, "Hey… you alright, kid?"

She shook her head, "Not really… but it doesn't matter now. Thanks for the invitation, Asuma-sensei."

Feeling very sorry for her, Asuma couldn't help but to hug this girl around the shoulder, "I'm sorry, Sakura."

"Asuma!"

That voice startled the two as Asuma gasped, "Kurenai!?"

Kurenai crossed her arms, "So, this is what you meant by, 'doing paperwork with the guys'?"

Asuma gulped and quickly went up to her, "What?! Oh, sweetpea, please listen! Don't get so mad or else the baby will be ill!"

Kurenai frowned, "You said that you'd be with me later tonight… that you had to do paperwork and that was why you couldn't be with me…!"

Turning her head, she shook it sadly watching Sakura, "I'm so disappointed in you, too, Sakura!"

Sakura's eyes grew wide, "Wait! Kurenai-sensei! It's not what it seems!"

' _Damn it!'_ Asuma said, _'If I tell Kurenai the real reason, Sakura will hear…!_ '

"Let's just talk this outside, Love." Asuma desperately tried to pull her out, trying to avoid any embarrassment towards her.

"No!" Kurenai said as she stomped her foot, "You will explain it all here right now."

Everyone in the restaurant watched in horror and disgust on this random scene of a soap opera.

"Let everyone know you are somehow a cheater!" Kurenai said, "I never knew you'd do this to me…! You always treated me so great…. What will our child think!"

She dramatically fell to her knees and said, "Oh! And I thought you had some human in you! What will I tell our child!? That you cheated on a pregnant woman!? His mother!?"

Suddenly she passed out and Asuma and Sakura ran up to her. Immediately using her chakra to look over at Kurenai and said, "Did she use some pain killers?"

Asuma sighed and ran his fingers through his hair, "She must have taken the wrong ones… you see, there's these pain killers that make her seem so out of character, like a jealous soap opera person… No wonder…"

Sakura watched Asuma pick up her girlfriend and she said, "Asuma, take her to the hospital, she should be looked over with her special doctor, just in case for the baby."

Asuma nodded, "Ah, yes, thank you, Sakura."

With that, Sakura walked away towards her house while hugging herself. She couldn't stop thinking of him, she didn't want to be fooled again thinking that he would pretend to care for her that way.

"I don't want to be hurt again." She whispered to herself.

* * *

Naruto was sitting on top of his place. He then laid back and watched the stars, not bothering to change into normal sleeping clothes.

" _No. I don't love you."_

Her voice echoed at the back of his mind as he forced himself to accept this. He knew this day would come sooner or later. She was probably in love with Lee or something…

Sitting up, he ran his fingers through his hair and looked at the bright moon, "Should I… Should I really not tell her?"

He was going to tell her the truth, but when she answered him that she did not love him anymore, his mind went blank. The only thing he wanted to do was to get away.

But the image of her and Lee getting all lovey and stuff made him sick.

"I have to tell her…" He mumbled to himself, "I just have to tell her the truth."

* * *

 **Yo ayo! Sorry for not updating…! I will update sooner now, I promise hopefully… Anyways, thanks for all the support! You are all awesome! Xx**


	10. Do the Thing

CH10: Do the Thing

* * *

Tsunade looked over the village from her office window. She shook her head slowly as she continued to hear Shizune.

"Apparently, none of them could make Sakura and Naruto come back together…." Shizune said as she watched Tsunade turn around to face her.

It had been a day since the incident of the restaurant. Tsunade sighed and sat down and looked over at Shizune, "Anyways… we must get ready for the Chunin exams. The Kazekage is coming along with his siblings, so we must prepare everything for their coming."

Shizune nodded and excused herself from the office to make sure everything was in order. As she left the office, Ino barged in, "Please listen to me!"

Tsunade stood up and frowned, "Ino! What type of entrance is this!?"

Bowing down, Ino said, "I apologize… I just wish for you to listen to a request of mine."

Placing her hands on her hips, Tsunade watched her carefully, "Go on. Is this about Sakura and Naruto?"

Her eyed grew wide, how did Tsunade know of this?

"You… know?" Ino said to her in surprise.

Nodding, Tsunade went on, "Of course I do. Now, what is your request?"

Quickly getting up, Ino said, "Please allow a dance party! Invite the whole village or something! Music heals the soul, right?"

Sitting down, Tusnade sighed, "You do know the Kazekage will be here soon, right? Tomorrow, that is. After that, the Chunin exams will begin a week later. Everyone has to prepare for this."

Getting on her knees, Ino went loudly, "Please! It would be relaxing before the exams, too!"

"Will this make Sakura, feel better?" Tsunade asked.

"Yes, it will. I'll prepare everything to be ready in about two days!"

Tsunade frowned, "Two days? Isn't that too short?"

"So, is that a yes?" Ino asked filled with hope. She remembered seeing Sakura so sad when she came back. Of course, Ino was angry with that fat man, but seeing Sakura like that made her sad.

" _I don't want to get hurt again…."_ Her voice said in Ino's mind.

Sighing, Tsunade nodded, "Alright… I guess so. Get as many as you need to help. I'm allowing this because the Akatsuki have been on low activity lately… even though we must not let our guard down, I guess it is alright to have a bit of fun. Also, to make Sakura feel better."

Ino grinned and could almost hug Tsunade, "Oh, thank you! Thank you!"

After excusing herself, she sprung out to find her friends to help.

* * *

Shikamaru sat down next to Naruto as they sat on top a building, admiring the breeze.

"So, when are you going to tell her?" Shikamaru asked him quietly.

Naruto stayed looking at the view of the clouds and sighed. After a while he said, "Soon. I want to tell her so bad, but knowing that the Akatsuki would strike at any minute, makes me hesitate."

Shikamaru looked at him with a bored expression and said, "Just do it already… nothing is going to happen…!"

"You don't know that…!" Naruto frowned at him, "What if something happens to her? You know how those bastards can be…"

Suddenly, they heard a loud rumble and both stood up to see what it was. A building was being built and it looked like Yamato's work.

"Looks like Yamato is back from helping Anko, Sai, and Shino…" Shikamaru said as he continued to watch.

"When do they come back?" Naruto asked.

"Soon…" Answered Shikamaru and got off, with Naruto following him.

They were curious and wanted to see why Yamato was building something out of nowhere.

As they walked down the dirt road, Naruto went on, "I guess I could say the truth once I see her again…"

Smiling, Shikamaru said, "Finally… so, if we bump into her right now, you will tell her?"

"Yes."

They continued to walk quietly, but Shikamaru spoke after some thought.

"What if she doesn't believe you… what if she really did stop loving you? Or that she hates you…" he said, not meaning to sound too.

Hearing these possibly options that might come up to him, scared Naruto a bit. He didn't want this to happen, but he couldn't keep her from the dark too long, either. He had to tell her anyway… if he saw her that is.

Finally reaching the new building Yamato made, both of them walked in. Looking around, they heard a familiar voice.

"Yes, bring it over here! That looks perfect~!" Ino grinned as Yamato sweat-dropped. He had agreed to help Ino with her party thing. He's been carrying this huge vase and every time he placed it down, Ino would change her mind and want it somewhere else.

"Are you sure?" Yamato asked.

"No… move it to the right, instead." Ino said as Naruto walked, being all loud.

"Ino! What are you doing?!" He said as he looked around at the large space.

Turning around, she said, "Naruto, I am having a dance party. You can come along, if you want. But please don't embarrass us with your stupid dances."

Confused, Naruto said, "Dances?"

Shikamaru walked behind Naruto and said, "Whoa, nice place… Can we help?"

' _Sakura could appear here, or maybe is here… the sooner Naruto gets this over with, the better.'_ Shikamaru thought as he waited for Ino's response.

"Alright. Naruto, come help me with decoration, Shikamaru, go invite the whole village."

His eyes grew wide, "T-The _whole_ village?!"

Placing her hands on her hips she said, "Yes. The _whole_ village! This is a village party!"

Sighing, Shikamaru said, "Give me the damn invitations…"

Quickly running to get a huge stack, Ino handed them to Shikamaru.

"Whoa, how did you get so much copy?" Naruto asked.

Yamato shrugged, "Paper is tree…. I am literally a tree."

* * *

Sakura was in her room listening to some music as she cleaned her house.

"Oh! That Ino left a mess!" Sakura said as she cleaned the counters, "Really? Eating all this food and not cleaning it up…"

She looked up and sighed, the whole place was a huge mess…

"It's going to take all day to clean!" Sakura said to herself as she continued to clean.

Ino had come to her house all angry about being kicked out of a "place".

Not wanting Ino to see her crying or being all sad, Sakura listened to her friend yell on about some fat guy being rude. But once Ino had asked her about the night, Sakura gave her a fake smile. She told Ino that it went ok and that the food was great.

' _I couldn't even eat any… Only breadsticks.'_ Sakura thought while placing the dishes away.

There was a knock at her door and she went to lower the volume of the music and then straight to the door.

' _Who is it? Is it Ino?'_ she thought while opening the door. It was TenTen standing at the door, smiling at her.

"Hello, Sakura!" She grinned at her.

Sakura signaled her in and smiled, "Hey, TenTen. How are you?"

"Doing great!" TenTen smiled brightly at Sakura as she entered the place.

As TenTen sat down at her sofa and said, "What happened here?"

"Ino happened. She came in and all of a sudden wanted to eat the whole place and watch movies…" Sakura laughed a bit and sat down next to TenTen, "Sorry… I was cleaning."

Shaking her head, TenTen said, "Nah, it's alright. Anyways, I need a favor to ask you. Since Ino is busy, I thought you might be willing to help."

Curiosity was filling Sakura. What did TenTen need?

"Is Ino working in the hospital?" Sakura asked.

"Oh, I thought you knew…" TenTen went on, "She is having some dance party! Everyone is coming!"

Sakura's eyes grew wide in confusion, "Party?! Does she not know that there really isn't any time to party? There is a huge threat hanging over our heads as we speak! The Akatsuki! Oh, what is she thinking?"

Shifting a bit, TenTen slowly went on, "Oh… well, so you won't come?"

"Me? No, someone has to be at full alert at least…"

TenTen gave a sad look, "Aww! Please come? It'll be so much fun! You have to come."

A party? And everyone is coming? How could Tsunade allow this… this was insane. If the Akatsuki attacked now, then they'd all be dead.

After thinking of it more, Sakura continued to shake her head, "No, I can't. But when is it?"

"Two more days." TenTen answered.

"What?!" Sakura practically yelled, "Two days to do this?! That's not enough time!"

TenTen grabbed Sakura's shoulder and shook them, "I knooowww! That's why I need you to help me pick out a dress!"

Sakura looked up and sighed, "Alright… I guess so. But you have to promise me you'll be at full alert just in case anything happens."

Giving a smirk, TenTen said, "Sakura, I'm a kunoichi! I know this. Don't worry, it'll be fun and you should definitely come!"

Standing up, Sakura smiled, "Nah, I think I'll pass. First of all, the village, second of all… I just don't really feel like going… I just want to stay and I dunno… I just don't wanna go, really."

A disappointing look appeared on TenTen's face, "Alright… I won't force you, but it won't be as fun!"

Looking around, Sakura said, "Yea, I'll help you as soon as I finish my work here!"

"I'll help you, Sakura." TenTen smiled, "It's the least I could do."

* * *

"Naruto! No, move it over there…" Ino said to Naruto.

Yamato and Ino watched as Naruto attempted to move some tables.

"Over here?" Naruto asked.

"No, move it a little to the left…."

That's what he did.

"No, a little to the right…. More… more, wait! Yea right there." Ino grinned as Naruto watched her with an annoyed look.

Yamato sighed as he wiped some sweat off of his forehead and continued, "Is there any more need of my assistance?"

Ino looked at him and thought for a second, "Hm… ah! Yes, could you go and get the DJ supplies? Lee has everything."

"D-Dj?" Yamato asked, "Lee?"

Naruto walked in looking at her suspiciously, "When did you have everything ready? You said that you got permission today…"

Laughing nervously, Ino went on, "Listen… I just know how to get things quick… Now, Naruto. I want you to finish making sure this place is clean and I'll go check on Shikamaru!"

Before Naruto could groan in laziness, Ino ran off with Yamato following later.

Looking around, Naruto saw that this place really needed to get cleaned. Chuckling to himself in a suspicious way, he did a hand signal, "Who says _I_ exactly have to do it."

* * *

Walking around, Ino finally spotted Shikamaru.

"Are you done?" Ino asked as Shikamaru walked up to her.

"Listen, Ino…" He said, "I have to help with the preparations of the Kazekage and his siblings… So, find someone else."

Ino grabbed his arm and said, "Fine, but come help me find someone!"

Groaning, Shikamaru followed her walk around to see if they could find any similar people. Passing by the Uchiha grounds, they spotted Sasuke and Itachi.

Ino's eyes lit up as she ran to greet them, "Hello!"

Turning around, Itachi gave a nod, "Hello. Is there a problem?"

They were next to these tricycles and helments. Ino thought it was probably one of those kids' things.

"Yes, are you busy?"

Itachi placed his hands in his pocket and said, "We were going somewhere-"

"That's perfect!" Ino said, "Could you please hand these out? Shikamaru here has to help the Hokage… It's a dance party and everyone is invited."

Sasuke got a piece of paper and observed the paper, "Hmm… sounds like fun."

But he handed back the paper and said, "Sorry we can't do that right now." Sasuke then grabbed his helmet and leaned against his tricycle.

"Wait…" Ino began, "Are those your tricycles? Why do you both tricycles?"

Itachi sighed as he clipped on his helmet, "Sasuke's motorcycle broke down. Our father is fixing it for us now. And we wanted to take a ride."

Shikamaru looked worried and confused, "Aren't you an Anbu captain? Isn't your father a very busy man like you? Why are you taking so many breaks?!"

As the brothers got on their tricycles and shades, Sasuke mumbled, "Because, shut up."

Without another word, they both paddled away into the dirt road as the chorus of "ridin dirty" by chamillionare started to play in the background.

 _They see me rollin_

 _They hatin_

 _Patrolling they tryin to catch me ridin dirty_

 _Tryin to catch me ridin dirty_

 _Tryin to catch me ridin dirty_

 _Tryin to catch me ridin dirty_

 _Tryin to catch me ridin dirty_

Both of them rode their tricycles looking all serious while an old lady with her dog awkwardly walked past them. She looked uncomfortable as the dog was eyeing the Uchihas suspiciously.

She tried to cross the street, so Itachi got off and helped her.

 _My music so loud_

 _I'm swangin_

 _They hopin that they gon catch me ridin dirty_

 _Tryin to catch me ridin dirty_

 _Tryin to catch me ridin dirty_

 _Tryin to catch me ridin dirty_

 _Tryin to catch me ridin dirty_

"That was a waste of time..." Ino sighed while pulling her hair and watching them continue on.

Shikamaru and Ino walked on and on until they finally spotted TenTen and Sakura. They were looking through shops for what appeared, for dresses.

Ino ran up to them with Shikamaru following behind, him being annoyed of having to be dragged around.

Sakura looked at the footsteps and saw Ino. She immediately placed her hands on her hips and said, "Ino… You have left a mess at my house! And second of all, a party? This village can't afford-"

"Yea, ok forehead!" Ino said quickly dismissing her and turning to TenTen, ignoring Sakura's eyes rolling.

"TenTen! Could you please pass these out while you are shopping with Sakura?" Ino asked quickly, "ShikaDUMMY here has to do something."

Shikamaru sighed, "I have to help-"

Ino ignored him and went on, "Please?"

Smiling, TenTen accepted, "Of course, Ino!"

A wave of relief fell over Ino as she handed the remaining papers to TenTen, "Ah, thank you!" But then her attention was to the pink kunoichi, "Ah, Sakura! You have to come… after last night, I know this will make you feel better!"

Sakura crossed her arms and said, "Ino… no, I can't and I won't. There has to be at least one shinobi with a good mind in case the Akatsuki attack!"

Ino rolled her eyes, "Don't worry, there won't be alcohol…. At least not directly there…"

Quickly shaking her head, Ino grabbed Sakura's hands and said, "Please come? Even if it's for a little while! For only thirty minutes at least!"

Sakura ran her fingers through her hair and said, "I don't know…"

Shikamaru heard this and thought, _'If she doesn't come… Naruto can't tell her the truth!'_

Clearing his throat, Shikamaru went on, "I also think you should come! Everyone will be there and if you are on your own and somehow bump into the Akatsuki, then do you stand a chance?"

"No… I guess you're right. But still… Parties don't really interest me."

TenTen grabbed Sakura's shoulder and said, "Ah, come on, Sakura! Only for a while? Please?"

Sighing once again, Sakura turned around, "I'll think about it…"

Ino waved them goodbye, giving them smiles. But as soon as they were gone, she grabbed Shikamaru's arm and whispered loudly, "Is there something going on?! Are you trying to do something about this plan without me!?"

Shikamaru leaned his head back, "Actually… Yes. Let's just say that Naruto needs to talk to Sakura… And that it all depends on Sakura then."

Ino's eyes grew wide and was delighted, "What happened? What is he going to tell her?!"

"I'll tell you afterwards… just make sure she goes to the party."

With that, he left towards the Hokage. Ino stood there grinning as she made her way back to where Naruto and Yamato were at.

* * *

Sakura looked at some of the dresses they were selling and saw how pretty they were. Once she turned the price tag, her eyes grew wide, "N-Never mind!"

TenTen looked through the racks and pulled out a bright colored dress, "Ooo, how does this one look like?"

Sakura looked at it and shrugged, "Ino is the fashion expert… but I think it looks pretty. How much is it?"

Turning the to see the price, TenTen gulped and slowly placed it back, "On second thought… this dress is sort of ugly."

Suddenly they heard a male voice saying something and it sounded familiar.

"That dress fits you nicely…! Hold on, what's that in your hand…? It's me!"

Sakura and TenTen looked at each other and walked over to the changing room and their eyes grew wide.

"Kiba?!" Sakura and TenTen said together.

He turned around and blushed, "Ah! Hey, you guys! What, um, what are you all doing here?"

TenTen placed her hands on her hips and leaned forwards with a sly grin, "I see you are shopping for… dresses? For you or for the person bEHIND THE DRESSING ROOM!"

Sakura grinned, "Aw, I didn't know you had a girlfriend!"

Kiba blushed and leaned against the changing room, "What are you talking about? Me?"

Suddenly the door opened and Kiba fell backwards, "Ah!"

"Oh, I'm so sorry, Kiba!" A voice said from the inside.

Sakura and TenTen both slowly walked over and their eyes grew wide.

"Hinata?!" they said as she looked at them with a nervous smile.

Sakura blinked, "Y-You two are going out?"

Kiba got up and crossed his arms, "Yea? So what?" His attitude suddenly changed into a desperate one, "Please don't tell Neji! He'll be some freak or something about it…"

"Hey!" TenTen said frowning, "I'm sure he's a bit obsessed, but he's ok with this I'm sure!"

Hinata stood there with a blush on her face, "I-It's just that he can be a…. annoying."

Sakura and TenTen gasped. Hinata called someone annoying? And her cousin? If Neji heard this, he would be heartbroken.

Sakura smiled, "Don't worry, we won't tell… But, how long have you two been going out…?"

Kiba grinned and said, "About three months now! We've been a bit on low, since Hinata is scared to what her family might say. You know them, always so strict."

TenTen nodded, "Yes, especially since Hinata will take over some day."

But looking at Hinata's dress, Sakura smiled, "Aw, that dress looks cute! Are you two shopping for the party thing Ino has?"

Hinata nodded, "Yes, it will be so much fun! Are you two going?"

"I am!" TenTen said as she grinned, "With Neji, of course. But this loser here says she doesn't know."

Sakura sighed and crossed her arms, "Look, I'm just concerned that's all… Besides, I'll think about coming."

Hinata smiled nervously and said, "I think you should come! It will be so much fun with you around..!"

Sakura shrugged, "I dunno… but who knows! Anyways, you almost done shopping?"

Smiling, Hinata answered, "Ah, no not really."

Kiba's eyes grew wide as he said, "Hey, why don't we all go together? That way, Hinata and I can go around with more comfort."

Hinata nodded in agreement and said, "That sound great! Will you join us?"

The two kunoichi agreed and all four decided to go shopping together.

* * *

"Hello, Naruto…." Ino said as she made it back. The real Naruto was dancing to some song loudly as his clones did all the cleaning.

Yamato was actually doing work unlike Naruto who was also singing along the loud music.

Ino frowned and walked up to the music and unplugged it angrily.

"Hey!" Naruto frowned, "That was my song!"

Ino placed her hands on her hips and said, "Naruto, may I have a word with you?"

Naruto moved his hands around, "Look, if its cause I was being lazy and let all the clones do the work, I'm sorry ok?"

But she grabbed his arm and pulled him to the side, "Not that! It's about Sakura."

Hearing her name made his heart race and he held his breath for a second before slowly going, "Yea…? What about her…?"

Ino grinned, "Shikamaru told me you were going to tell her something! What is it? I must know."

Naruto began to walk back, "Don't worry about it, Ino. But, um, just to ask…" He turned around and whispered to her, "Is she going out with Lee…?"

Smiling she said, "No. Why? Are you jealous by any chance?"

A small blush appeared on his face, "Let's just say that it didn't feel right… Anyways, I'll be going on now to finish this cleaning."

Ino felt like doing backflips! He plan was really working and she felt like she could fight anyone.

"That's good!" Ino said happily, "That's very good!"

* * *

Kakashi, Gai, and Asuma were all walking together through the village, when they saw TenTen run up to them.

"Gai-sensei!" TenTen said as she approached the three.

"Ah! TenTen!" Gai grinned widely, "What seems to be… UP?"

Giving them a piece of paper, TenTen smiled, "Ino is having a dance party! Will you all come?"

Just then Sakura, along with Kiba, Akamaru and Hinata walked behind TenTen.

Crossing his arms, Kiba grinned, "These guys? They can't dance."

Gai got in a random pose and said, "Can't dance?! Me? The most handsome youthful person on earth? Just watch this!"

And to everyone's horror, he made some weird moves and then spun around quickly in the air, soon landing smoothly with a huge grin, "Well?"

TenTen had a bored expression, "Don't embarrass yourself, sensei…"

"I'll make you proud, TenTen!" Gai grinned widely.

Sakura laughed at him and then turned to see Asuma standing there smoking his cigarette.

"Ah, Asuma-sensei, is Kurenai-sensei alright?" She asked him remembering what happened last night.

"Yes, she is fine. So is the baby. But she is resting now, so everything is good."

"Will she be able to be at the party?" Hinata asked concerned even though all three just found out about the party.

Asuma scratched the back of his head and said, "Ah, yes. Kurenai does like these types of stuff sometimes… I'll ask her when I get home."

"That's good…" Hinata smiled.

The group excused themselves to their teachers and moved on. As soon as they had gone, Gai said, "Did you see that?! Sakura seems ok… maybe this whole thing wasn't such a mess."

"Or maybe…" Kakashi said, "She's faking it."

Asuma placed his hands up and started, "Alright, alright, alright! Now here is the super ultimate plan. The more they are together, the more the chances are they will speak to each other more, right? So, why not make them go on a mission together?"

Kakashi shook his head, "No, before Sakura and Naruto would switch to get out if they were ever together. So, this wouldn't work so well."

Gai walked forward, "Let's just tell the Hokage about this. I'm sure she will agree since one day Sakura and Naruto will be forced to work together since she is a medical kunoichi."

Asuma nodded, "Besides, will be a good idea to be on the lookout for the Akatsuki. We need to also focus on them."

Kakashi nodded in agreement, "I guess you are right…"

Without another word, they all went to talk to Tsunade about the plan. As soon as they got there, Tsunade was already expecting them.

"Good timing." Tsunade said as they entered the office, "Anko has gotten a possible location as to where the Akatsuki could be at. I want you three to go check it out. Bring Sakura and Naruto with you."

"Naruto?" Shizune asked as she was standing next to Tsunade, "But wouldn't that be dangerous? They are looking for him!"

Tsunade sighed, "When he hears about this, there won't be no way of bringing him out of not going. He will want to go…"

Kakashi, Gai, and Asuma were all cheering loudly in their minds, throwing confetti and dancing terribly to music.

"What did you want me for?" Tsunade asked them.

"Ah, nothing!" Gai grinned, "Nothing at all…! When do we begin?"

"As soon as Anko's team gets back…"

* * *

It was already getting dark outside. Sakura had said her goodbyes to Hinata, TenTen, Akamaru, and Kiba. She had bought a dress…. _'Only because it was cute!'_ Sakura said as she held the bag tightly.

"Ah, I'm so hungry." Sakura said as she was walking in the bright streets with a couple of stray dogs walking around.

"Maybe I should get something to get while I head home…" Sakura said as she looked around for any shop that had some good food.

But at the end of the street, Naruto was also heading home. After a long day helping Ino, he and Yamato were tired. And by tired, they meant annoyed with Ino's constant voice telling them to "move it to the left" or "a bit to the right."

Naruto was walking with his arms resting behind his head, walking humming a song. He looked to his right to see a stray cat chasing something that ran under the garbage pile that was behind a store.

' _Heh, dumb cat'_ He said as he continued to walk. But as soon as he looked up he saw Sakura walking the opposite way towards him.

He gulped as he slowly let his arms down.

"You have to tell her." He whispered to himself as he went up to her.

"Sakura!" He called out towards her. She looked up and her eyes grew wide.

' _What does he want?'_ She thought as she pretended not to have heard him. She made a turn, but suddenly felt his presence next to her as he grabbed her hand tightly.

"Wait." He said in a low serious voice. She froze and didn't dare to move. Slowly, she spoke, "What do you want…?"

* * *

 **Ohhh cliff hanger! what will happen next?! Hopefully, I'll update on Saturday! My computer sucks and I can barely get on in. I'm so glad I'm done writing it, or else you would all wait like a month for a chapter haha. But thanks for all the support, I really appreciate it.**


	11. Look What You've Done

CH11: Look What You've Done

* * *

Sakura stared right in his eyes and took steady breaths. He slowly let go of her and took a step back, allowing her some space.

Naruto then cleared his throat and began, "I have something to tell you, Sakura…"

She stayed silent as she watched him carefully, silence filling them up. But after a while, Naruto spoke.

"The thing is-"

"Shut up." Sakura said as she turned around, "I don't want to hear about anything, anymore."

Shaking his head, Naruto went on, "You don't understand, the whole thing was a lie!"

That thing made Sakura snap. She didn't understand what he meant, but she thought that his love for her was a lie is what he was telling her right now.

"I said I don't want to hear it!" Sakura yelled turning to him, "All you've ever done to me is lie! You've lied to me all this time and I was stupid enough to believe!"

He frowned and swung his arm in the air, "No, that's not it! You've got it all wrong-"

"That's not what you told me months ago." She glared at him, not wanting to hear him anymore, "And I don't have any time to play your stupid games anymore, Naruto… Just leave me alone."

Running his hand through his hair, he walked up in front of her, blocking her way, "Sakura, please!"

"Move out the way!" She pushed past him walking angrily away, "And don't follow me!"

Naruto showed nothing but determination as he continued to call and follow her, "Sakura please stop..! This is very important! Give me chance, here!"

She stopped and turned around crossing her arms, "Fine. You have three seconds to tell me something pathetic."

He grinned widely as he placed his hands on her shoulders gently, "I've-"

But suddenly there was a loud voice being calling Naruto's name loudly. Curious, both turned their heads to see three figures walking towards them.

Squinting a bit, Naruto then grinned, "Gaara!"

Sakura watched the sand siblings walk up to them. She then worried what they might think seeing both her and Naruto like this.

Quickly, she went to greet them, "I thought you would all come in tomorrow… But it's nice seeing you all."

Temari grinned widely as she went to hug Sakura, "Hey, it's nice to see you."

Ever since Sakura had saved Kankuro from the poisoning, Temari had been very grateful to her ever since, she'd been much kinder to her, too.

Sakura hugged back and grinned, "It's nice to see you, too, Temari."

Gaara gave a nod at her and looked at Naruto and gave a small smile, "Good seeing you, Naruto…"

Naruto grinned widely and scratched the back of his head, "Ha! It's also great seeing you, too! It's been a while!"

Kankuro gave Sakura and Naruto a sly smile and said, "Were we interrupting something…?"

Sakura blushed a bit and shook her head, "No, not at all! I was just leaving when Naruto here wanted to give me something."

Showing her bag from earlier she smiled, "Ha! You see? Oh, I really need to get going. Um, Naruto?" Turning her head to give him a fake smile she went on, "Why don't you bring them to the Hokage?"

Before Naruto could protest, Sakura continued, "I really have something important to finish, so I can't go with you all."

Temari smiled, "Sure, you'll help us with the Chunnin exams, right?"

Sakura shrugged, "Hopefully, I've been given some tasks to do, so I'm not so sure."

The sand kunoichi grinned, "Alright… take care, I'll see you tomorrow, ok?"

"Sure thing, goodbye…!" With that, she quickly walked away, not wanting for Naruto to follow.

Naruto watched her leave and clenched his fists, not having the opportunity to tell her. But it was soon let go as he turned and led the sand siblings to the Hokage's office.

* * *

After making sure Naruto wasn't following her, Sakura ran. She ran through the dark streets and towards her house.

' _What did he want to tell me?'_ She thought as she ran up the stairs of the empty streets, _'Probably some other lie!'_

As she made it to her house, she felt her chest squeeze in side of her. Looking up to the bright moon, she sadly said, "What was it…?"

Making her way inside, she quietly closed the door behind her and then slid down, wrapping her arms around her legs.

' _What if it was something that he still loved me…?'_ She thought but then shook her head, "No, even if it were true, I wouldn't believe it anymore…"

But her mind was going crazy thinking if that really was the answer, her heart beat fast just thinking that was it. She wanted to believe that was it… but even if it was, she just didn't want to be used again, 'wasting his time'.

Leaning her head back against the door, she sighed. She lifted the hand he had grabbed and smiled a bit, "His rough hands were touching mine again…"

Quickly shaking her head, Sakura frowned, "No! Don't… don't think that!"

Placing her hand on the side of her face she sighed again, "What am I going to do…?"

-/-/-/-/-

Tsunade's eyes grew wide as she watched Gaara, Temari and Kankuro walk into her office.

"So soon…?" Tsunade said as she stood up to greet them.

"Sorry for coming early." Temari said, "Gaara wanted to get here fast to have enough time to prepare."

Naruto wrapped his arm around Gaara's neck and grinned widely, "Gaara can stay over at my place! It'll be like some sleepover or something!"

' _Sleep… over?'_ Gaara thought as he looked at Naruto, _'I wonder how those things work…'_

Tsunade shook her head, "Absolutely not. The kazekage cannot stay at your place…! We already have everything ready for the three of you to stay at."

Naruto pouted and whined, "Tsunade-baa-chan! Please?"

Kankuro laughed, "Gaara's never really had a 'sleepover', Naruto."

Naruto let go of Gaara and said, "That's why! We'll watch movies, eat ramen, have some games…!"

"Games?" Gaara asked, "Like what type of games?"

Shrugging Narutp went on, "I dunno, anything you want."

Temari placed her hands on her hips and said, "Don't you think you're a bit too old for this 'sleepover' thing…?"

Ignoring her, Gaara looked at Tsunade and said, "I think its best if we stay at Naruto's house."

Her eyes grew wide, "W-What? Naruto, do you even have the place clean? Or at least something extra for them to sleep in?"

After thinking for a while, Naruto said, "Actually, I do… Only an extra bed that is. Temari can sleep on the couch while Kankuro can sleep on the floor. Sorry, Kanuro, I don't have any extra sheets."

Temari and Kankuro watched him in confusion. Was he being serious right now? In reality, he wasn't. Naruto was too worried about Sakura that was why every stupid thing came out of his mouth. He just wanted to run up after her to tell her the truth.

Grabbing her brother's shoulder, Temari went on, "Listen, Gaara, you can go stay over with Naruto… Kankuro and I will stay over here."

Gaara gave a nod, "Alright."

Without another word, Naruto grabbed Gaara's stuff and ran out, "Let's go!"

* * *

Sakura couldn't sleep that night. She laid in her bed looking at the ceiling of her room.

"I can't sleep!" Sakura almost yelled angrily as she stood up and headed to her living room.

Looking over, she saw her bookshelf and angrily pulled out a book, "Maybe this will help me keep my mind off… Hey, wait a minute… I never finished this book!"

But just as she was going to read the book, her door was being rung loudly.

"You've got to be _kidding_ me…" Sakura mumbled as she went to open it to find Ino standing there, looking exhausted.

"Ino-?"

"You are going to the dance party thing!" Ino yelled as she pushed past her and flopped to her couch.

"Ino, what happened?" Sakura asked as she went over to check on her friend. She looked so tired, not even makeup could cover that.

"I've… been working all day… making this party thing… for you…" Ino panted, "And… and you don't wanna come?!"

Sakura rolled her eyes and headed to the kitchen to get her a glass of water, "Ah, Ino! You know I suck at dancing… and I just don't really feel like going. Wait-"

Suddenly realizing, Sakura ran up to Ino, "You are doing the party for me?! I thought it was for the whole village!"

Groaning and painfully laughing, Ino got up, "Yes, it's for everyone, but I came up with the idea just for you… When I remembered that you were like meh, I came over here as quickly as I could. Now, you are coming either you like it or not."

' _If what Shikamaru says is true…'_ Ino thought, _'I have to convince Sakura to come to the party!'_

Sakura sighed, "You didn't… have to do that."

"Sakura, I just want you to have fun, be happy, I dunno something!"

Leaning back on the couch, Sakura sighed, "I'm alright… I don't know, I just… don't feel like going, it's something that wouldn't really make me happy right now, you know?"

"Then what will? What do you want me to do, Sakura? How can I make you go to that party!" Ino asked feeling hopeless.

Giving a sly grin, Sakura sat up and said, "Let's just watch that horror movie you chickened out the other day. You have to watch it with no breaks or nothing."

Ino's eyes grew wide, "That movie?! Why?! You know I'm scared of those things badly!"

"See? I suck at dancing but you still want me to come to that party."

Pouting a bit, Ino took a deep breath, "Fine. But only if I can stay over and you come to the party. Deal?"

Sakura nodded, "Ok, if you chicken out, I won't come and you have to buy me something. Deal?"

Mumbling with annoyance, Ino shook on it, "Fine…"

' _Things I just gotta do for my friends…'_

Clapping her hands excitedly, Sakura went to turn on the TV, "Fine, you can hold onto something while it's playing, Ino!"

Ino scoffed, "Excuse me? I can do this alone, thank you! I just can't wait to see you dancing on the dance floor!"

"Alright, whatever, it's starting. Hold on… go to the bathroom first, I don't want my couch all wet because you were too scared."

Standing up, Ino stomped to the bathroom, "Ah, ha! We have jokes now, do we?"

Sakura laughed and yelled, "Ew! Gross! Don't talk and pee at the same time, that's so nasty!"

"Shut up!"

* * *

Gaara walked next to Naruto in the quiet streets of Konoha.

' _Is it going to be like in the books and movies…?'_ Gaara thought about his sleepover, ' _Are we going to stay up all night? Paint our nails? Does Naruto even do that…?'_

As Gaara was wondering how his first sleepover would be like, Naruto was thinking deeply of Sakura. Should he make up an excuse just to go find her?

' _No, I can't do that… Look how excited Gaara is!'_ Naruto looked over at his friend who was looking a bit excited, but tried to hide it.

Naruto looked at his feet and finally decided to leave it for tomorrow.

' _I'll see her tomorrow… I'll go find her first thing in the morning.'_

"Naruto." Gaara began as Naruto turned his head quickly.

"What's up, Gaara?"

Gaara's eyes looked over at Naruto and slowly said, "You're… acting different… It's like you are worried of something or thinking of something. Is there anything wrong?"

Quickly, Naruto waved it off, "Nah, it's nothing too important! Anyways, let's hurry and go inside, I've got this super cool movie we can see together!"

Just as Naruto was talking with Gaara, he noticed that they passed Sakura's place. But he had reminded himself that he would tell her later.

As soon as they made it to Naruto's place, Gaara looked at the place and saw how dirty it was.

"I put your stuff here, Gaara! Let's just eat something real quick." Naruto said as he went to the kitchen and got out some ramen cups.

Gaara placed his stuff down and sat on the couch, "So… what else do you do in sleepovers? Only eat and watch stuff?"

Naruto scratched the back of his head, "Um, well, to be honest I've never really been to an actual sleepover. The only time was when I had to sleep over at Sasuke's place… But he was too busy training at night… But his older brother, Itachi, he showed me some movies."

Gaara leaned back a bit and said, "I've never been at some sleepover before… "

Naruto's eyes grew wide, "Ah! I see!"

Without another word, Naruto went to his speakers and looked back at Gaara, "Let's put some music!"

But as soon as Naruto pressed play, 4/5ths Direction played loudly through the speakers. Quickly turning it off, Naruto nervously laughed, "Ah, haha… Sorry, about that."

To his surprise, Gaara stood up and turned it back on, "Naruto… this… is my favorite song!"

* * *

"We should just hang out with Naruto and Gaara." Temari said as she looked at her brother, Kankuro.

"Sure, I mean they are probably doing something stupid… like I dunno, playing some game…"

Temari crossed her arms, "How is that _lame_? You don't do shit! I mean, do you even have friends?"

Kankuro frowned, "Hey, don't go that way, Temari! Ugh, let's just go for a bit, I'm tired."

They both left and walked on outside to hear some loud music being played. Looking at each other with confusion, they went on towards Naruto's house. But as they got closer to his house, the music go louder.

"Is that…?" Kankuro asked while looking at Temari.

"Oh my god…" Temari kicked open the door to see that Naruto, Gaara, and some other random people were all dancing in sync to the music.

"BEST SONG EVERRR!" Naruto and Gaara 'sang' to the finale.

Temari and Kankuro watched in horror with wide eyes. They could not move or believe that Gaara would be dancing to this type of music.

Looking up, Gaara gasped and quickly stood up and returned to his serious face. Kankuro then busted out laughing and walked up to Gaara and slapped his back hard, "Gaara! I-I ha ha! I can't believe I just saw this shit!"

Gaara's face went all red as he crossed his arms, "Hey, I told you, didn't I? And what are you doing here?"

Temari frowned and kicked Kankuro, "Hey, shut up! If he wants to dance to that type of music, let him!"

As the three were all arguing about the situation, Naruto went to prepare some ramen for them all. When he came back, the three were all sitting comfortably in the couch, still arguing.

"All I'm saying is," Kankuro began, "Is why do I have to always be the last one to pick the movies? And why does Temari get to use the bathroom first?"

Gaara sighed, "We aren't talking about that…"

"Kankuro!" Temari frowned, "Fine, you pick the movie. But I still get first bathroom privileges."

Naruto watched them argue over these things and thought, _'I'm so glad I don't have siblings…'_

* * *

The next morning, Gaara left early to go and help organize with the Chunin Exams. Waking up to the sunlight, Naruto looked around and saw a mess. Last night, Gaara, Temari, and Kankuro decided to watch movies and eat all his food.

After they had left, Gaara and Naruto stayed up late to talk and play a board game Naruto had in his room. It was weird though because it only had numbers, the alphabet, a yes and a no, and some triangle thing.

"Why did it move by itself…?" Naruto wondered as he saw the board, "All the lights went out after we used it, it was so funny how worried Gaara was, saying there were spirits and stuff."

He stretched his arms out and yawned, "Spirits… I can't even pronounce the name of the game… anyways, it was boring. Nothing fun happened."

As he went to his kitchen, he saw all of the chairs piled up on top of each other with his ramen cup at the top.

Groaning loudly, Naruto began to put everything back, "So, Gaara has some jokes now, does he? But how did he do this…?"

Shrugging it off, he went to eat his food. He chewed slowly, until he realized…

"I have to speak to Sakura!" Without another word, he ran to his room and changed real quick. But right when he was about to leave, his whole place was sparkling clean.

"Whoa, I never realized how fast I cleaned…" Naruto shrugged as he zoomed out of the door.

' _You idiot stupid boy!'_ The kyuubi said to Naruto, ' _You have summoned ghosts or spirits into your house! That's it, if I could I'd switch bodies right now with some priest or something.'_

"Spirits?" Naruto wondered, "Nah, that's just Gaara playing around. Anyways, I need to find Sakura!"

* * *

Sakura woke up in her living room with Ino snuggling against a giant pillow. She laughed a bit remembering how Ino actually went through. She hadn't moved from her spot since then.

Standing up to stretch a bit, Sakura yawned, "That was some movie…"

As Sakura was in the kitchen grabbing something to eat, Ino suddenly woke up gasping.

Looking up, Sakura worriedly said, "Hey, you alright?"

Blinking and running her fingers through her hair, Ino slowly nodded, "Yea, no thanks to you…! Stupid scary ass movie… ooo! I can still see the thing in my mind!"

Sakura laughed, "What? You wanna use the bathroom?"

"Ha ha, shut up… I'll be right back."

Washing a cup, Sakura said out loud, "If you're lucky…!"

"Sakura!" Ino yelled as she zoomed into the bathroom quickly to get out soon.

' _Shit, now_ _ **I'm**_ _alone!'_ Sakura thought as she pulled out some milk from the fridge.

In less than a minute, Ino was in the kitchen, "Changing subjects, we are going shopping today for your outfit."

Sakura had forgotten about the other part of the deal. She slowly nodded, but then said, "But wait… then who is going to take care of the party for today? Isn't it tomorrow the party?"

Smiling, Ino went to grab a bowl from Sakura's cabinet, "It's all taken care of. I'll just stop by and supervise."

"So, who's coming…?" Sakura asked not feeling it today to go "shopping".

"Everyone… Even the Uchihas. That'll be kinda weird, though… like can they dance like really cool moves?" Ino asked as she stared at her bowl.

Sakura watched her with a confused, "Hey, are you ok?"

Looking up immediately, Ino said, "Hm? Oh, yea, I'm just a bit tired… and SPOOKED… but nothing much."

Drinking up her glass of milk, Sakura walked towards her room and then placed down the glass on her table, "I'll go change… you can borrow something of mine if you want."

Ino looked at her outfit and frowned at herself while following Sakura, "Yea, I'll borrow something, I kinda smell…"

* * *

Naruto looked everywhere for her. He walked up everywhere for her, he wandered around, ignoring people's weird stares.

"Where is she..?" Naruto asked as he went towards the hospital to see if anyone has seen her at all.

As he reached the hospital, he went around asking for her. But as he went asking, many did not know where she was and said she was on some break from the hospital. Sighing with defeat, Naruto decided to go and see if she was anywhere else near.

' _Maybe she's with Ino…_ ' He thought as he walked past the academy.

"Naruto!" A voice yelled at him, making Naruto turn around, "Huh?"

Right behind him was Konohamaru grinning widely, "Naruto! What are you doing here?"

Sweatdropping a bit, Naruto said, "Um, aren't you supposed to be at school? If Iruka-sensei finds out, you will be in big trouble…!"

Chucking a bit, Konohamaru went on, "Naruto, today is a day off! Everyone is getting ready for the big party that Ino ninja girl is doing!"

"What?! It's that important?!" Naruto said with wide eyes, "How?!"

Suddenly the school bell rang loudly, making Konohamaru jump and grab onto Naruto's arm, "Let's just go!"

They both ran fast and far enough to be away from the academy.

"What was that about?" Naruto asked suspiciously, "Are you skipping or something?!"

"What? No, no, it's just that, I'm taking a break… For now."

Naruto tapped his foot, "Really? Why are you doing this… It's not good for you if you want to become the hokage one day!"

Quickly trying to change the subject, Konohamaru went on, "By the way, what were you doing here?"

"I was looking for Sakura…" Naruto said simply, "Have you seen her by any chance?"

' _If I somehow distract him…'_ Konohamaru thought, _'He won't tell Iruka-sensei and I won't get in trouble…!'_

"Oh! Yea, I saw her!" He said all enthusiastic, "I'll show you, Naruto!"

Naruto's eyes grew wide, "You have? Then what are you waiting for? Let's go!"

"I think I saw her near the shopping area! It's a busy street, so we might miss her, but let's go."

Konohamaru led the way and Naruto followed behind, a little bit nervous. He was going to tell her finally what the real reason of his stupidity was. He couldn't take this lie anymore and wanted to be with her again… that is, if she forgave him.

So he mentally started to "prepare" himself to what he would say to her. Konohamaru turned his head and looked at him a bit scared, "Um, Naruto? What are you doing?"

"Practicing…" He mumbled as they got closer to the shops.

* * *

Sakura and Ino walked down the streets to look at shoes at the display windows or any other thing.

"I'm hoping to get these shoes that I saw the other day," Ino went on, "and to see them now… I'm not so sure, but I so want to get them!"

Sakura nodded, "How do they look like? What store did you see them in?"

Ino glanced across the streets and her eyes grew wide.

' _Naruto?!'_ Ino thought as she saw him looking around for something, but it was so crowded that he didn't notice them.

"Hey…" Ino grabbed Sakura's arm.

"Huh, what?" Sakura asked a bit annoyed at her sudden grab.

"Isn't that Na-" Ino began but as soon as she turned her head, he was gone, "What the?! He was here a second ago!"

Sakura stopped walking and looked around, "Who?"

' _Did that punk really just disappear in thin air?! Or was it the stupid movie that is making me hallucinate!?'_ Ino thought as she ran her fingers through her hair, "Never mind, Sakura… I must have imagined seeing someone…"

"Alright…" Sakura began as she went on forward, "You know, now I really want to get something done with my hair…"

' _Where did he go?!_ ' Ino thought as she tried to see if she could sense him, but she couldn't.

She then saw Sakura's hand waving in front of Ino's face, "Hello? Ino? Are you ok?"

Giving a fake smile, Ino shrugged, "Whoops! Sorry, I must have been thinking of something… anyways, let's go!"

* * *

"Konohamaru, she isn't here…" Naruto said all disappointed that there were lots of people all over the place.

"I think she might be somewhere in those stores!" Konohamaru said quickly as he pulled his hand and into the nearest shop.

After a while of searching, Naruto got frustrated, "She isn't here… I should ask Tsunade-baa-chan or something…"

' _If he tells the hokage, then she'll find out I wasn't at school, telling Iruka-sensei, getting me in trouble…!'_ Without another thought, Konohamaru quickly said, "Let's get something to eat first! I'm _so_ hungry!"

Hesitating a bit, Naruto finally agreed, "Ok, what do you want to get?"

* * *

Ino and Sakura decided to go get some yogurt at this café. As Sakura was talking with Ino while sitting on a table, Ino looked past Sakura and almost choked on her yogurt.

"Ino!" Sakura got up and patted Ino's back as Ino struggled to point past Sakura.

"What?" Sakura looked back to see no one familiar or threat.

As Ino finally got her breath back, she gasped, "I saw him again! Where is he!"

' _I swear I saw Naruto with that annoying kid! I saw him and somehow they disappeared again!?'_ Ino thought as she got up to the area.

Scanning through the place, Naruto and Konohamaru was nowhere to be found.

"Ino, are you alright? Who are you looking for?" Sakura asked while also "looking" for the person Ino saw.

"Nevermind…" Ino said slowly as she got back to her table with Sakura following her.

' _What if I'm just imagining it?'_ Ino thought, _'I can't let Sakura know that I'm randomly hallucinating stuff!'_

Meanwhile, with Naruto, he was annoyed that Konohamaru was whining that he didn't want yogurt, that he wanted candy.

"Fine! We left the shop!" Naruto sighed as he followed Konohamaru to another shop, "I really wanted some yogurt, Konohamaru! And the one where they put those chocolate stuff on it? And they have candy on them, too."

"That thing sucks, Naruto! I've been saving up money to get this type of candy… a whole package."

As they were walking by, Naruto saw Shikamaru and ran up to him, "Neji! Have you seen Sakura?"

Thinking for a bit, Neji shook his head, "No, I haven't… Have you checked the hospital or the hokage?"

Naruto shook his head, "No, I haven't with the hokage… But I will now. Hey, take care of Konohamaru, alright?"

With that he disappeared in thin air, leaving Neji hanging about refusing such offer.

Konohamaru crossed his arms and shrugged, "Let's go get some of that candy…"

Neji looked at him and eyed him suspiciously, "Aren't you supposed to be at the Acadamy?"

Before Konohamaru could deny anything, they both heard Ino yelling loudly.

"I swear I just saw him here! Neji! Neji!" Ino yelled as she ran up to him as Sakura followed, "Ino! Calm down!"

Neji and Konohamaru stopped a bit terrified at her sudden outburst.

"Ino, whats-" Neji asked, but was interrupted by Ino, "Tell me Naruto was here! Tell me he was here with you this second…!"

Sakura scoffed, "Is that who you've been seeing this whole time? Naruto?"

Ino grabbed onto Neji's shoulders and shook them, "Was he here…?!

Konohamaru moved away slowly next to Sakura and whispered to her, "Hey, that lady is so crazy…"

Ino's head turned sharply with her eyes filled with redness, "Shut up, kid!"

Sighing, Neji took Ino's arms away from his shoulders, "Look, yes, Naruto was here."

"He was?! So, I'm not going crazy?" Ino asked all happily.

"What type of ninja are you?" Neji asked, "And aren't you like some specialist with minds…?"

Giving a big sigh, Ino said, "Look, I've been in enough genjutsu and stuff… but ever since I saw that stupid movie, I've been acting weird."

Sakura crossed her arms, "Tell me about it… So, you saw Naruto all along? Where is he?"

In reality, she really didn't want to see him at this moment. He would probably want to tell her something stupid. Sakura didn't want to hear any excuses or anything… but at the same time she kind of wanted to hear what he had to say. But as she thought more about it, she saw how Ino was always talking about Naruto or anything related to him.

' _She's been wanting to know more about me and Naruto more… but mostly Naruto… she's always randomly "bumping" into him… Does Ino…?'_ Sakura thought at it. What if Ino really did like Naruto? She'd have to accept it.

' _I don't want anything with him anyways…_ ' Sakura thought, _'Besides… I have to move on…'_

Konohamaru quickly said, "He went to the hokage!"

Ino grinned, "Ah, that's good! Let's go, Sakura!"

Not wanting to go, Sakura shook her head, "No, I don't want to go, and weren't we shopping, Ino?"

"What? That can wait, let's go, Sakura!" Ino said as she pulled her friend, "Come on!"

But Sakura snatched away, "Maybe another time, why don't you do instead, Ino? You seem to be pretty obsessed with him lately…"

Ino gasped a bit, "M-Me? No, I um, just want to say hi!"

Neji and Konohamaru saw the awkward atmosphere that was suddenly created and slowly tiptoed away.

"That was so close." Konohamaru said to Neji, "We were about to get involved in some lame girl drama!"

Neji sighed, "Yea, you're right. And I'm not forgetting that you are supposed to be at the academy."

Konohamaru's eyes grew wide, "What? Man, come on, let's have a deal, ok? Look at this right here… five bucks. Hm?"

But Neji didn't budge, "Let's go back to Iruka-sensei."

"No, please! Noooo!"

* * *

Sakura tried to smile, "It's ok, Ino! I mean, he isn't my boyfriend or anything! I don't care if you two go out!"

Ino just stood there dumbfounded, "Uhh…?"

"I mean!" Sakura went on, "It's not like I care about him that way anymore!"

' _Quit lying, Sakura…!'_ She thought as she looked at Ino.

Finally getting to herself, Ino blinked and said, "Um, there's been some mis-"

' _Wait…!'_ Ino thought suddenly, _'So now, Sakura doesn't want anything with Naruto…? What if I tell Naruto to pretend to go out with me? Be my dance date… Yea, Sakura will get so jelous… and then Sakura will be like "Oh no, lol I still luv you." and Naruto will be like, "lol me 2." Yes… perfect.'_

Sakura looked at Ino awkwardly, "Um, you just spaced out there…"

Shaking her head, Ino quickly said, "Ah, I um, yes! Sakura, if you don't want to see Naruto, I will. I suppose the secret can't be kept anymore."

Sakura's eyes grew wide, "What secret…"

Pretending to be deep in love, Ino twirled around Sakura, "That I, Ino, am madly in love with Naruto! Oh, I didn't want to tell you, but now that you aren't bothered by it, I might have a chance!"

Sakura gave a sad smile, "Ah, yea… you go for it, Ino… I'll just go and finish shopping. You should take him as your date for tomorrow."

Ino stopped in front of Sakura, "You mean it? You aren't bothered?"

Shaking her head, Sakura said, "No, of course not!"

Pretending to be overjoyed, Ino jumped in the air and squealed, "Ohh! Yes! I'm so happy! Finally my undying love will be heard! Maybe this time he'll really fall in love! Bye Sakura! I'll come to tell you the news soon!"

Ino 'skipped' towards the Hokage's office as Sakura watched her all happily go away.

"What have I done…?" Sakura thought with pure sadness in her face

* * *

 **Ayee! First of all, I'm sorry for not uploading for like a billion years… Life problems and computer jacked up. I wanted to upload yesterday, but my internet was jacked. (don't get Windstream, for real I hate that with pure hateness!) I feel so sorry, that I couldn't upload! Does anyone know if I can upload through mobile? Like on my phone, if i can even if its copy/paste, then the uploads will be so much faster!** **And thanks for all the support! xx**


	12. Kings and Queens

Ch12: Kings and Queens

 **Yo, I don't** **own anything! No lyrics, no nothing! All credit is given to their proper owners.**

* * *

After seeing that Sakura wasn't watching, Ino stopped skipping and stopped to look around. Some people looked at her scared and backed away slowly from the crazy woman.

"Look, it was all for a good cause!" Ino yelled trying to explain at the now running people.

Slapping her forehead, Ino turned around and headed towards her destination.

' _I just hope this works!'_ Ino thought as she continued to walk to find Naruto.

* * *

"I haven't seen her, Naruto." Tsunade said as she was filling out some papers, "She's having her break, why do you need her?"

Naruto leaned his head back and then forth, "I need to speak with her… it's very important."

Unknown to Naruto, Tsunade smirked, _'I'm so gonna win this bet with Shizune…! The bet was in less than two weeks, Naruto would come back for Sakura… she bet the other way… Shizune better get that dough ready that she's gonna owe me!"_

"Very important?" Tsunade asked as she stood up, "I see now, personal?"

Naruto slowly nodded, "Yea, sort of. Do you know where else she could be? I've been searching all morning for her…!"

"Try searching the hospital… If you find her, drag her here because I told her not to work! But I know she could punch you hard if you do try to drag her… so don't for your safety."

"But I've been at the hospital…" Naruto groaned as he sat down on the seat and ran his fingers through his hair.

"She may be training with Kakashi or something… I don't know what she does or whatever. She might also be with Ino! Go find Ino, she might tell you where she is." Tsunade said as she searched for an extra pen that was working.

Lazily, Naruto stood up, "Alright, I'll go… see ya!"

With that, he sped out the door accidentally knocking down the piles of paper.

"Naruto!" Tsunade yelled as Naruto's eyes shrunk and ran faster out.

Shizune ran in her office gasping, "What's the matter!?"

Mumbbling angrily, Tsunade got out some sake and drank the whole bottle, "That brat! He doesn't pick up what he dropped! And those are iMPORTANT PAPERS!"

Sweat-dropping, Shizune slowly walked over to the fallen pile and picked it up.

"And he's the _future_ hokage!" Tsunade yelled as she soon took another gulp.

* * *

Naruto finally stopped outside and gasped for air, "I need to work out even more!"

He turned towards the training fields to see if she would be there or maybe bump into Ino. But just as he was about to go, he heard his name call and saw Ino sunning towards him waving. He quickly looked around her if Sakura was there, but she was not to his disappointment.

Slowly walking up to her he gave her a sad smile, "Hey Ino…"

Without another second, Ino grabbed Naruto's arm and whispered, "There needs to be a talk between us!"

Frowning with confusion he asked, "Huh? What are you talking about? And have you seen Sakura?"

Ino shook her head, "No, I mean yes, but wait! I hear you want to tell Sakura something?"

He quickly nodded as Ino wrapped her arm around his shoulder and they both walked forward as Naruto looked at her with more confusion.

"Listen, Naruto, I need your help! Be my date for the upcoming party." She said as she looked at his reaction.

Naruto stopped walking and stared at her, "Um, Ino? I'm sorry, but I don't have feelings for you…"

Ino immediately wanted to slap herself, "No, Naruto… I know, but um…"

' _Quick! Think! He can't find out that you know that he knows that… you know that… he knows that… Shit! I confused myself! Anyways, think of something so he won't know that you know of… ANYWAYS..'_

"Oh, Naruto! I need your help!" Ino said all dramatically while falling to her knees.

"Ino? What is it? Look, I'm sorry, but I can't date you…" He asked as he tried to help her up.

"I need you to be my date for the party! I need to um make…" Ino looked around quickly to think of anything up. She hadn't thought this far and was making it up as she went. But out of the corner of her eye, she saw a man selling potato chips.

Without thinking it, Ino yelled, "I need you to help me make Choji jealous!"

Naruto's eyes grew wide, "You like Choji!?"

Immediately, Ino went to cover his mouth, "Shut up! We don't want the whole word to know… yet."

Getting out of her grip, Naruto spoke, "What do you mean get him jealous? What, is he going out with someone else or something? Does he not like you or something...?"

' _Why did I say Choji?!'_ Ino thought as she quickly spoke, "He's um, seeing other girls! So many, he's a playboy!"

Naruto gasped and looked at the floor, "How did he do that…?"

Suddenly some guys who overheard ran up to Ino, "What?! My boy, Choj getting some puh?"

Ino frowned, "Hey, who are you all exactly?"

"No, don't worry about us! Just tell us where he get them chicks! We need their numbers!"

Naruto scratched his head, "He bought chickens?"

Not wanting to hear anymore stupidity, Ino grabbed Naruto's hand, "We don't know! He just does! Let's go Naruto!"

After losing them, Ino sighed, "Anyways, so will you help me, Naruto?"

But Naruto was deep in thinking, "What does puh mean? Did they mean pudding? Choji really loves pudding…"

Ino wanted to scream of annoyance right there, "No! No, Naruto… just forget about that. So will you help me?"

Naruto shrugged, "Look, I don't think I can. I have to tell Sakura something really important but-"

"She doesn't want to listen, right?" Ino said, "Look, I can help you! You do this for me, Sakura gets a bit jealous, Choji get jealous, and they will be begging to come to us! So everyone wins! Ta-dah!"

After hesitating, Naruto nodded, "Fine, I'll be your date. But only because you say it'll work… "

Ino grinned widely, _'Finally! Sakura will be jealous and be like "Naruto I luv u!" And Naruto will be like "OMG bby gurl I luv u too!" Perfect!'_

Without holding back and being way too excited she jumped into his arms and hugged him tightly as Naruto tumbled back, "Hey!"

But unknown to them, Sakura watched from afar and turned around quickly.

"Why did I follow Ino!? I knew this would happen!" Sakura said to herself as she walked away making sure they didn't notice them.

She wanted to see if Ino was just joking around or being serious. Now it was confirmed to Sakura. That Ino was actually interested in Naruto.

Sakura walked towards the park and sat down. She took in a deep breath and slowly let it out. Running her fingers through her hair she looked up at the clouds, "Well… time to do something…"

' _What if they get married…?'_ Sakura immediately shook her head, "Why am I thinking so far?! Anyways, I have to find… find a stupid dress!"

Getting up she took another deep breath and let it out slowly again, "I can do this!" Sakura yelled with fist pump.

The people around her got creeped out and quickly kept their distance. One father that was walking with his son quickly said, "Son, if you ever get sick, I'm sorry but you are going to die because we are not going to see that doctor over there!"

Sakura's mouth grew wide open with what the man said.

' _I should just-! Think happy thoughts, Sakura…'_

Not wanting to get into any trouble, Sakura walked forward towards the shops to see if she could find anything.

Into the shops, Sakura found TenTen looking for more dresses.

"TenTen! I thought you already had a dress…" Sakura said as she walked up to her.

Sighing, TenTen said, "No, I have not… oh, what will I do?! The party is tomorrow night and I have nothing!"

Sakura gave her a small grin, "Same here… well, we will both look like shit then."

"That's a bit comforting…"

The door of the shop opened and they both saw Ino there with wide eyes and ran towards them.

"Sakura! TenTen! Guess what?" Ino said all happily, "Naruto agreed to take me on a date! We will be the most fabulous at the party!" Ino then squealed happily while jumping a little.

Sakura nervously chuckled, "Ah! Ha… I see, um, congrats, Ino!"

But TenTen watched Ino with wide eyes, _'Is she crazy?! Ino was the one that set up plans to get Sakura and Naruto together! Not separate them and have Naruto all to herself! No wonder they never worked…! I'm so sorry, Sakura…'_

"Ino!" TenTen said as she crossed her arms, "What exactly do you mean you are dating Naruto!? You know what? I was wasting my time-"

Not letting her finish, Ino quickly covered TenTen's mouth and nervously laughed at Sakura, "Please excuse us, Sakura!"

They both got out the store and Ino whispered, "It's part of the plan! We aren't actually dating!"

TenTen crossed her arms, "It doesn't look like it! You seem too happy!"

"Look, trust me… He has something very important to tell her. I told him I wanted to make Choji jealous and he fell for it! Sakura doesn't want to talk to him and this is the only way she will even pay attention to him! I mean, look at her!"

They both looked through the window to see Sakura looking at some dresses.

"You see?!" Ino whispered loudly, "That color dress she was looking at does _not_ match her at all! So, she must be going all jealous in her thoughts she can't think fashion right now!"

Lifting her hands in defeat, TenTen nodded, "Alright, alright. I'm sorry… but are you sure this will work?"

"I know it will." Ino said smiling, "I just hope Choji doesn't get the wrong idea…"

TenTen chuckled, "But why Choji? It would be more believable with some other guy that you are obviously 'into'."

Ino sighed, "Look, I just saw some guy selling potato chips and immediately thought of Choji… but anyways, let's go. Also, don't forget to tell the others… they will freak out like you at the party and we do not want any, um, problems."

TenTen nodded as they made their way towards Sakura, "Ok, I'll tell them later."

"Tell them what?" Sakura asked.

"That, um, to not forget to be there early for the party!" TenTen said nervously.

Sakura looked at her with a confused and concerned face, "That's it…?"

Trying to change to subject, TenTen went towards a rack and quickly scanned through them, "Ino! Thanks to you, I won't be able to find the perfect dress! In such short notice?!"

"This isn't f-cking prom, TenTen!" Ino said as she crossed her arms.

"I've never been to a prom!"

' _This is going to be a long shopping day…'_ Sakura thought as she watched them two argue about what prom was.

* * *

Gaara and his siblings were done with organizing the Chunin exams for the day. They were heading out to find their friends when they saw the whole village busier than usual.

"What's going on?" Temari said as she placed her hands on her hips.

"A party, that's what…." A voice said behind them, causing them to turn around.

Temari grinned, "Shikamaru! It's been a while now, has it?"

Shikamaru gave a nod, "Yea it has… I'm sorry I couldn't greet you all, I was busy helping the hokage with some work…"

Kankuro nodded, "Yea, but what party are you talking about?"

"The party that the whole village is going to… the one that Ino made to make everyone a bit relaxed. It's been a bit tense because of the unknowns of the Akatsuki." Shikamaru explained.

' _Heh.'_ Shikamaru thought, _'I know the real reason and you don't~!'_

"That sounds like fun!" Kankuro said with a grin, "When is it?"

"Tomorrow night."

"WHAT!?" All three said in wide eyes.

Gaara shook his head, "What was she thinking? The Chunin exams will begin soon after."

Shikamaru shrugged, "Yep. That's what's going on. So, are you all coming or what?"

Temari thought for a moment, "Yea, I'll go. But I'll need to find a dress… Hey, Gaara, lend me some cash?"

Kankuro frowned, "Temari! Where's that fifty at?!"

Her eyes grew wide, "Look, I'll pay up soon, but I need Gaara to lend me something now."

But Kankuro didn't seem convinced, "Hell no, I'm the one that needs the money from Gaara, I'm broke as hell! Hey, Gaara lend me the money not her, she won't pay you, trust me."

Temari gasped and frowned, "Kankuro, shut up! Gaara, don't listen to this puppet boy! Look, I'm your sister, you love me, right?"

Kankuro pushed Temari out of the way, "No, you love me more, right Gaara-wawa?"

Gaara looked straight at Kankuro's eyes, "Just for calling me that, you aren't going to get anything."

"WHAT!?" Kankuro yelled as Temari laughed evilly in the background.

"Neither are you, Temari…" Gaara said as he crossed his arms.

"WHAT?!" Temari yelled as Kankuro laughed this time evilly in the background.

Shikamaru sighed, "I'll lend you both some… but just don't argue like that in the party…"

Kankuro chuckled as he wrapped his arm around Shikamaru, "Listen, if you ever want to hook up with my lame-ass sister, then I'll help you, ok?"

Temari frowned and kicked her brother's knee, "Shut it."

Shikamaru sighed, "Alright, enough. Let's go… Gaara, aren't you coming?"

Gaara nodded, "Better than going to find Naruto… we accidentally summoned spirits to his house. I'm not going there again…"

Temari sighed, "That again? Did you use the ouiji board?"

His eyes grew wide, "How do you know…? I think it's a very clean spirit because it kept cleaning when I was there. It got some febreeze and started to spray it everywhere."

Shikamaru stood there with a creeped out face, "The f-ck were you two doing!?"

* * *

Finally after a whole day and a half, the whole village was getting ready for the party. Only a couple of hours left for it to begin and Ino was freaking out at Sakura's place.

"What if everything goes wrong? I just want people to be a bit relaxed, you know, Sakura?" Ino said as she was putting on some makeup.

Sakura was putting on her dress, "Don't worry, Ino… everything will be ok…"

Stopping, Ino turned around and saw Sakura with a straight face.

"Hey, what's wrong?" Ino asked as she got up and stood next to her.

"Huh? Oh, no, there's nothing wrong with me." Sakura said as she made sure her dress was on perfectly.

But Ino knew exactly why she was all down and stuff. Playfully, Ino elbowed Sakura's arm, "Heh, is it because I'm going out with Naruto now?"

That made Sakura tense up, "No… That's not it."

Ino grinned, "Are you sure? I can always break it up if you want~!"

She looked at her and took a deep breath, "No, that's ok. You know, there's nothing going on with us, so it's totally ok. Just to warn you… he lies a lot. I don't want you hurt."

' _Oh, Sakura…'_ Ino thought as she slowly turned around. Before the night ends, Sakura would be happy again, according to Ino that is.

As time passed by, none said a word to each other. Sakura wore a short red dress as Ino wore a short baby blue one.

"We look so beautiful!" Ino said as she twirled Sakura around, "All the guys will be all over you, I'm positive!"

Sakura gave a small smile, "Yea, maybe. You look so pretty, Ino!"

"Is my makeup alright? I don't want it to be all messed up!" Ino asked as she looked at Sakura so she could see.

After a while, Sakura nodded, "No, it's alright. It looks good! What about me?"

"Oh, Sakura! Your makeup is always on point!" Ino grinned as she got her clutch and waited for Sakura at the door.

Quickly, Sakura went towards Ino's side, "Let's a-go!"

Locking the door, both females soon started to walk in the dark.

"Ino, why was this party thing of yours at 11 at night?!" Sakura said as she frowned a bit as the two walked down.

"Hey, who wants kids at this party?!" Ino said as she looked around.

Sakura crossed her arms, "Yea, 'For the _whole_ village' except the kids… meaning half the village."

"Yo, it's the older people that work for the safety of this village… those babies over there? What are they doing? Getting a job? Helping the economy? No, so why do they deserve to have a party?"

Sakura shook her head, "Oh my god, Ino…"

"I'm just saying!"

They continued to walk until they saw a figure leaning against a building with the street light on him.

' _Naruto…'_ Sakura thought as she felt her heart racing fast. _'No, Sakura don't do this now… Don't…'_

Naruto turned his head and gave a small wave, "Hey!"

Sakura noticed that both Naruto and Ino were matching and she felt pure jealousy, but quickly dug it in deep.

Ino quickly ran up to him, "Oh! Sweet numnums! You waited just like I said before!"

' _Numnums!?'_ Both Naruto and Sakura thought at the same time trying not to laugh.

He gave a small grin and looked up to see Sakura. He hadn't been able to see her for a while, but seeing her again made his heart race. He couldn't stop staring at her on how beautiful she was.

' _I'm going to tell you, Sakura…!'_ He thought as he was about to go towards her, but was stopped by Ino.

"Not yet!" Ino whispered.

' _It's gotta be super romantic!'_ Ino thought happily, _'Not some lame under the street light crap!'_

Ignoring Ino's telling, Naruto still went on, "Sakura-"

"I'm so sorry, you guys!" Sakura said as she gave them a fake smile, "TenTen wanted me to go a bit early to help her with something. I'll see you all later!"

With that she pushed past Naruto and when they were out of sight, she ran.

Naruto stared at her and didn't say anything. Frowning, he turned to Ino, "You said she would listen to me!"

Ino crossed her arms, "I told you, didn't I? I told you not now!"

Naruto sighed, "Fine… By the way where's Lee? Isn't he her date or something?"

Ino scoffed, "What? No? Why do you ask?"

His eyes grew wide, "So, they aren't actually dating?"

Shaking her head, Ino said, "No, they aren't. They never were."

Relief washed all over Naruto as he grinned widely, "Really? Ok! Well, what are we waiting for?! Let's go and make this work!"

He grabbed Ino's arm and they both ran towards the party. But they had to stop and walk because running in heels was a pain in the ass and was slowing both of them down.

As they made it to the party, Naruto saw Sakura with TenTen and Neji. The whole place was covered in balloons and other decorations… expecially vases.

"Ino, why are there mostly vases?" Naruto asked.

"Hey, they were on sale!" Ino protested, "And they look kinda cool…"

"Please explain." Naruto said as he watched the music start getting loud and a random DJ guy dancing off beat to the music.

"Money can be exchanged for goods and services!" Ino sighed as she looked around for Sakura and soon spotted her.

Naruto frowned as he saw Choji near the food area eating lots of grilled food, "Hey, Ino! You said Choji was seeing other girls… the only thing that is around him is food!"

Ino chuckled nervously, "Did I say girls? I meant grills… You know, all he thinks is about food!"

He looked at her suspiciously, "Really? Well, he's all alone now. Go after him!"

Sakura looked up and saw Naruto with Ino and quickly turned her head to pay attention to TenTen's story more.

Ino tried everything to make Sakura look over at her and Naruto dancing to songs. But Sakura wouldn't dare to move to look at them. Even the others tried.

"Look! Is that guy checking you out!?" Lee said over exaggerated.

Sakura didn't budge, "Meh, it doesn't matter. Anyways…"

Naruto frowned, "Ino, this isn't working!"

Ino sighed, "You're right… Let's go talk to them…"

As the party was going on and everyone dancing, Asuma was staring around with KaKashi, Gai, and Kurenai. All of them were talking while watching everyone else dance.

As Asuma was ready to take out another cigarette, the next song that came on made him freeze.

The song "mine" by Taylor Swift started to play in the background.

 _Uh, oh, oh_

 _Uh, oh, oh_

Asuma gulped while nervously lighting up his cigarette. He watched everyone dancing to the song. His song.

 _You were in college working part time waiting tables_

 _Left a small town, never looked back_

 _I was a flight risk with a fear of fallin'_

 _Wondering why we bother with love if it never lasts_

"Oh, man..." Kakashi sighed, "Country isn't really my type of music."

Asuma's forehead veins popped out angrily, but kept a "calm" looking face, "Why, Kakashi?"

"Myehh... I dunno... Are you ok, Asuma?" Kakashi asked his friend.

"You don't seem so good." Gai said a bit worried.

But Asuma was trying his hardest not to take over the dance floor with his sick moves.

 _'Not today, Asuma...,'_ Asuma thought desperately.

 _I say "Can you believe it?_

 _As we're lying on the couch?"_

 _The moment I can see it._

 _Yes, yes, I can see it now._

On the other side of the room, Ino tried to convince Sakura to come dance with her.

"Come on, Sakura...!" Ino tried to drag her up, "Let's dance!"

 _'This song reminds me too much of him!'_ Sakura frowned while wanting to escape, "Ino, I can't be here anymore…"

"But you just got here!" Ino said as she crossed her arms.

Naruto looked at her, "Hey, why don't we both dance?"

Sakura didn't look at him, "No, I'm alright."

 _Do you remember, we were sitting there by the water?_

 _You put your arm around me for the first time._

 _You made a rebel of a careless man's careful daughter._

 _You are the best thing that's ever been mine._

Asuma tapped his foot to the beat while smoking really fast. Kurenai placed her hand on his shoulder and asked, "Asuma, you're smoking that too fast, is everything alright?"

 _Flash forward and we're taking on the world together,_

 _And there's a drawer of my things at your place._

 _You learn my secrets and you figure out why I'm guarded,_

 _You say we'll never make my parents' mistakes._

 _'You can control yourself, Asuma!'_ he thought to himself while giving a smile to his girlfriend, "Yea! I'm totally fine!"

 _But we got bills to pay,_

 _We got nothing figured out,_

 _When it was hard to take,_

 _Yes, yes, this is what I thought about._

Asuma turned his head to see this kid doing the worm terribly on the floor, totally off beat. Seeing that kid do that, was the last straw for Asuma.

"That's it!" Asuma yelled as he pushed his way to the middle of the dance floor.

"THIS is how you dance, kids, to the BEST song ever!"

 _Do you remember, we were sitting there by the water?_

 _You put your arm around me for the first time_

 _You made a rebel of a careless man's careful daughter_

 _You are the best thing that's ever been mine._

He started to dance and sing with the song, smoothly, while many people gasped at this. Other watched in awe on how this ninja loved Taylor Swift.

 _Do you remember all the city lights on the water?_

 _You saw me start to believe for the first time_

 _You made a rebel of a careless man's careful daughter_

 _You are the best thing that's ever been mine._

 _Oh, oh, oh, oh_

"Oh my god..." Ino said with eyes wide open, "Asuma-sensei is a swiftie."

Sakura immediately got up to see him killin the dance floor with his sick moves and voice.

"What the?!" Sakura yelled as Naruto turned to look with wide eyes, "Asuma?"

 _And I remember that fight_

 _Two-thirty AM_

 _As everything was slipping right out of our hands_

 _I ran out crying and you followed me out into the street_

 _Braced myself for the "Goodbye."_

' _Cause that's all I've ever known_

 _Then you took me by surprise_

 _You said, "I'll never leave you alone."_

Asuma grabbed Kurenai's hand and sang to her along with Taylors voice:

 _You said, "I remember how we felt sitting by the water._

 _And every time I look at you, it's like the first time._

 _I fell in love with a careless man's careful daughter._

 _She is the best thing that's ever been mine."_

Kurenai smiled and said, "Asuma! What… the hell…?"

Asuma returned dancing with other random ninja dancing behind him in perfect sync.

 _Hold on, make it last_

 _Hold on, never turn back_

 _You made a rebel of a careless man's careful daughter_

 _You are the best thing that's ever been mine._

Soon, Kakashi and Gai joined him dancing side by side, all three passionately signing to the song.

 _(Hold on) do you believe it?_

 _(Hold on) we're gonna make it now._

 _(Hold on) and I can see it,_

 _(Yes, yes) I can see it now (see it now, see it now...)_

Fireworks exploded in the background for the big finale, almost blowing up the building.

Asuma, Kakashi, and Gai all looked at each other with huge eyes. They all pointed to each other and said at the same time: "You're a swiftie!?"

Ino crossed her arms, "Ok, who put on Ninja Tay Swift? Right, I hired Yamato as the DJ…"

Naruto's eyes grew wide, "Oh! So was he the one that was totally off beat when we entered?"

Sakura sighed, "I gotta go use the bathroom."

Naruto looked at Ino trying to see if Ino agreed if he could follow her to tell her. Ino shrugged, "Nothing worked, so go ahead!"

"What about Choji…?" He asked.

She turned to see Choji, Shikamaru and Lee having an eating contest.

"Don't worry about it." She said, _'That food cost me a lot of missions!'_

Naruto nodded and went after Sakura pushing past the dancing people.

Soon, he saw Sakura stopping to look into her clutch for something when Naruto stepped right in front of her, "Sakura…"

She looked up and sighed trying to push past him, "Leave me alone, Naruto…"

But he grabbed her arm gently, "No, I still haven't told you what I wanted to tell you from before… So, I'm going to say it. But I'd like to go somewhere more quiet." He said as some dance music blasted in the background.

Sakura hesitated and said, "Look, there's nothing left to talk about… You've got Ino and doing this is just terrible. So… just leave me alone, please. I've been through enough, ok?"

She pulled herself away from him and ran towards the bathroom, not allowing him to speak.

He frowned and crossed his arms, _'You can't stay in the bathroom forever, Sakura! I'm going to tell you once you get out… oh man, that totally sounded creepy!'_

But inside the bathroom, Sakura's heart was racing. She went towards the mirror and looked at herself. Slowly she touched her chest where her heart was and felt it bump fast.

' _What if it's something important…?'_ Sakura asked herself, _'What if him telling me to stay away from him and Ino? Asshole… I know my place… but what if it's something else…?'_

* * *

Gaara stood there watching his siblings enjoy themselves.

"Where is the real music…?" Gaara asked himself as he went to talk to the DJ. Meanwhile Kankuro was flirting with a bunch of girls at the same time… but they were mostly using him to get the number of the Kazekage. Poor guy…

"So, your brother is the Kazekage?!" One girl squealed, "That's like, so rad!"

"Hey, can he like really do that sand thing and kill people?" another asked.

Kankuro chuckled, "No shit, sweetie!"

The girl gasped angrily and kicked him where the sun doesn't shine and said, "Come on girls! We are wasting our time with him! Let's go to the main dish!"

Everyone followed her and left Kankuro with full confusion, "All I said was no shit! They can't take sarcasm!?"

Gaara went up to Yamato and said, "Hey um… do you have-"

Temari interrupted him, "Gaara they don't have Vert Day… or My Physical Romance…"

Yamato shrugged, "Actually, we do… do you want to put in a request?"

Gaara shrugged, "Yes, please, anything but the theme song of my little pony: friendship is magic that has been playing for the last fifteen minutes…"

A random guy in the dance floor yelled out, "Hey! I like that show…"

Soon the music was changed to a totally different type of music, actual dance music.

As the time went by and Naruto waited for Sakura to get out, he started to get a bit worried. She wouldn't come out…

' _Too bad I'm a boy… or I'd go and check on her… maybe…'_ He thought as he looked around and ran outside to transform into a girl to check on Sakura.

But just then, Sakura peeked out the door and saw that no one was there, and no Naruto.

Without another thought, she quickly walked away towards somewhere where none of her friends were. She pushed past dancing people and frowned at the sweaty smell that they had acquired.

"Gross…" She mumbled to herself as she found an empty table and sat down. But as soon as she sat down, her favorite song came on.

She smiled to herself and said, "Well… I did come to have some fun, right?"

Looking around, she finally went on and started to slowly dance her way in. She laughed with some others that seemed to also like this song, too. Altogether, they all danced, making Sakura forget about Naruto for just this minute.

But meanwhile, with Naruto, he looked around making sure no one saw or else they'd think he was some pervert.

Making his hand sign, he transformed into a female, "Ah ha! I'm so adorbs! Hi! My name is… Tulip."

"Very original." A voice said from behind him.

Gasping, Naruto turned around, "Sasuke! What are you doing here?"

"Naruto?" Sasuke asked, "Why are you dressed like that? I didn't know…"

Itachi soon appeared, "Naruto, we clearly saw you transform. You are under arrest for being a pervert."

"Hey, wait!" Naruto said quickly, "Look, it was all for a good cause!"

"Yea, for your eyes!" Sasuke said as he approached Naruto, "Transform back…"

Naruto sighed, "Fine… I was just wanting to check on someone… and since I'm a male, I couldn't enter the bathroom… so that's why I transformed."

Itachi squinted his eyes, "That is the creepiest excuse ever. To the Uchiha place…. Police… thing…"

Sasuke sighed, "Itachi, let me do this... you're too drunk. And you only took one cup!"

"Actually Sasuke, I can perform my job perfectly."

"We aren't even on duty!" Sasuke protested, "You said we'd have fun and not worry about this job!"

Naruto slowly slipped away and ran back inside trying to look for Sakura.

"Now look what has happened, Sasuke!" Itachi sighed, "Naruto has left…"

Sasuke sighed and crossed his arms.

Giving a small smile, Itachi said, "Ok… I guess we didn't see him… besides I think he was telling the truth and it's, to be honest, too much paper work."

Sasuke grinned widely, "Really? Man, this is going to be a fun night!"

But they spoke too soon. A wave of fangirls/boys all shrieked and chased after the Uchiha brothers.

"Noo! Run, Sasuke!" Itachi yelled as they both headed to the mountains.

* * *

Sakura's favorite song had ended and the next song that played was a slow couply song. Everyone around her got with their couple and started to dance.

She slowly started to leave, not wanting to be the only one there. As she pushed past, couples randomly started to make out, others were confessing their undying love, and others were crying because they didn't have a partner… in crime.

Sakura sighed with annoyance and continued to push past and finally reached her friend's table. They were all gone except for Choji and Ino.

"Sakura!" Ino grinned, "Where's Naruto?"

"Oh, um… he's… I honestly don't know, sorry." Sakura said as she sat down.

Ino grinned, "Hey, why don't you start to dance with Naruto? "

Sakura looked at her, "Isn't he your date? Dance with him."

Choji kept eating his chips as their friends returned and song ending and turning into another romantic song, but it was a bit more of a disco type of music.

Everyone left again to dance after a drink. Ino looked around and saw Naruto. An idea randomly popped into her mind as she pulled Choji, "Sakura! Choji and I will dance now! Please take care of our seats?"

Sakura shrugged, "Sure."

Ino grabbed Choji and whispered to him a plan she had, "Let's randomly, 'push' them together on the dance floor! You get Naruto and I'll get Sakura!"

Choji grinned, "Yea! I just saw Naruto, meet at the center?"

Ino nodded, "Ok!"

Sakura closed her eyes and the music was making her go crazy. She opened her eyes to see everyone all sweet with each other.

"Sakura, you have to dance with us! I can't just leave you here!" Ino said to her as she pulled her friend, "I'm so stupid, you have to come!"

Sakura was dragged to the dance floor pushing past more people, but the more she was there, the more she wanted to leave.

 _'I shouldn't have come!'_ Sakura thought as she pushed herself through the crowd, letting go of Ino's arm, ignoring her calls.

All Sakura wanted to do was to get out.

But suddenly feeling a big push, Sakura stumbled out into the center of the dance floor and bumped into another person.

Both looking up, they saw each other.

"Naruto..." she whispered barely making a sound.

All of a sudden, a bright light made a focus on them and all the music stopped. No one was near them and everyone's eyes were on both of them.

 _'OOHH shit._ ' They both thought.

Before any of the two would do anything, the beginning of "Missing You" by John Waite started to play as the stage brought up someone from the floor along with background dancers, all in sync.

As the intro was playing in the background, it was making a lot of people to cry in the corners.

Other couples slowly danced around Naruto and Sakura who were both confused and flustered.

 _Everytime I think of you, I always catch my breath_

 _And I'm still standing here, and you're miles away_

 _And I'm wonderin' why you left_

 _And there's a storm that's raging through my frozen heart tonight_

Sakura looked at Naruto and then sighed. She couldn't be near him anymore. She wanted to get away before she did something stupid.

"I... I have to go." She said softly as she stepped away.

But as she was turning around, she felt someone grab her hand.

 _I hear your name in certain circles, and it always makes me smile_

 _I spend my time thinkin' about you, and it's almost driving me wild_

 _And there's a heart that's breaking down this long distance line tonight_

Sakura turned around and saw Naruto's pleading eyes, "No, please... Stay for a bit longer with me. We have to talk."

She wanted to stay and forget everything that had happened. But it wasn't that easy for her. She somehow knew what it would be about… Something with Ino and him.

 _I ain't missing you at all since you've been gone away_

 _I ain't missing you, no matter what I might say_

Ino's eyes grew wide as she pulled Choji's tie, "Who is that!?"

Being all casual, he answered, "Oh that's just John Waite."

Neji walked up to them and activated the byakugan, "No... It's not John Waite..."

Chouji looked confused, "Then who is it?"

Neji deactivated his byakugan and took a deep breath, "It's… _Ninja John Waite_..."

Yep. Ninja John Waite was singing on the stage passionately.

 _There's a message in the wire, and I'm sending you this signal tonight_

 _You don't know how desperate I've become_

 _And it looks like I'm losing this fight_

 _In your world I have no meaning, though I'm trying hard to understand_

 _And it's my heart that's breaking down this long distance line tonight_

Sakura took a step away and said, "Look, I understand, ok?"

Naruto's eyes lit up happily and relived, "Really?"

' _When did I tell her…?'_ He thought as he sighed with relief, _'Wait… she isn't responding positively!'_

 _'He... He really doesn't want me anymore...'_ Sakura thought hurtful. She felt her chest squeeze and her nose hurt a bit.

Trying to not cry, she nodded and started to walk away, "Don't worry, I'll try not to bother you two anymore… "

' _Don't cry, Sakura… You knew this was coming.'_

 _I ain't missing you at all since you've been gone away_

 _I ain't missing you, no matter what my friends say_

Naruto looked at her confused as she was disappearing into the crowd of crying people along with couples.

He pushed himself through the crowd trying to reach Sakura before she really did disappear.

"Sakura, wait!" He called out after her.

 _And there's a message that I'm sending out, like a telegraph to your soul_

 _And if I can't bridge this distance, stop this heartbreak overload_

Sakura couldn't hold in her tears anymore. She covered her mouth as the tears streamed down her face. She pushed herself through ignoring his calls.

 _I ain't missing you, I ain't missing you, I can lie to myself_

 _And there's a storm that's raging through my frozen heart tonight_

 _'I shouldn't be crying for him!'_ she angrily thought as more tears came down _'Its the same luck as before...!'_

As she finally made it out of the building, she ran away from everyone _._ She didn't want to speak to no one or see anyone. She wanted to be alone… although deep down, she didn't want to accept their new relationship, this thing broke it.

 _Ain't missing you, I ain't missing you_

 _I ain't missing you, I can lie to myself_

 _Ain't missing you, I ain't missing you_

 _I ain't missing you, I ain't missing you_

 _I ain't missing you, I ain't missing you, ain't missing you, oh no_

 _No matter what my friends might say, I ain't missing you..._

As Naruto finally reached outside to look for her, she had already disappeared into the dark night.

"Why'd she run out crying…? I didn't even say anything…" He said as he looked around some more for her. But he could not find her that night.

* * *

 **I think this is the longest chapter… besides the final one, that is. Anyways, hopefully starting on Sunday, I'll upload each day! So, wish for this laptop to work… but thanks for all the support and for being so patient! Xx**


	13. C'mon, C'mon

CH13: C'mon, C'mon!

* * *

Sakura lay in her bed that morning. She hadn't even bothered to take off her dress and change into something more comfortable. But with a big effort, she sat up and looked at herself in the mirror of her room.

Her eye makeup had smeared all over her face and she looked like a complete mess. Once she got up and was heading towards the bathroom, her door knocked loudly.

"Ah…" Sakura groaned, "I really don't want to see anyone…!"

The knock became louder as Sakura was heading towards it.

Once she opened it, it was Shizune standing there looking surprised, "Ah, Sakura! A-Are you alright?"

Giving a small smile, Sakura nodded, "Yea, I forgot to take off my makeup last night… Anyways anything you need? Wish to come in?"

But Shizune shook her head, "I'm actually in a hurry now. But the Hokage has summoned you for an important sudden mission! Please be at her office as soon as possible!"

"Important? Is it that bad? I'll be there as soon as possible!" Sakura said as Shizune gave a nod and disappeared.

Closing the door, Sakura looked worried, "I hope it doesn't have to do with the Akatsuki… I have to hurry, though."

* * *

"This didn't work!" Ino yelled as she was helping Yamato and some other volunteers clean up the place. It was a total mess with cups, plates, random stuff all over the floor.

"The party?" Yamato asked, "I'm pretty sure it was a success…"

Ino mumbled angrily, "I thought I would be way better than this! What did I do wrong?!"

Just then Lee walked in making the place get messier thanks to his sakura petals flying in.

"Lee!" Ino yelled, "I thought the shoujo effect would wear off by now!"

Lee just chuckled nervously, "Actually… the contract is for a year long."

"What-? Contract-? The f-?" Ino said quickly as she continued to clean.

"I just came to help! Oh, and sorry Naruto won't be here to help. He's going on a mission today with Sakura!"

This immediately made Ino stop and run towards Lee, "Mission!? Oh, when did she decide this?"

Lee thought for a moment, "Um, about this morning… Gai sensei told me that he was told by her. Looks like she is in some bet with Shizune and has the end of next week to win the bet!"

"This isn't a game, Lee!" Ino said a bit angry, "This is about…"

Swooning a bit, Ino said, "This is about true love!"

Overhearing, Yamato walked up to them, "Or maybe you should all leave those two to solve their own problems!"

Ino frowned and crossed her arms at him, "Do you think Albert Einstein just _solved_ his own problems?!"

"Who's that…?" Yamato asked confused.

Ino shrugged, "I don't know either, I just came up with that… anyways, we just gotta push them together… Also, you can't do anything from what the Hokage said!"

Yamato sighed, "I see… Even the Hokage is in this mess…"

* * *

"Where is she!?" Tsunade yelled angrily as she stood up in her office.

Once she had heard that Sakura had run away from Naruto, she immediately went to organize a mission for them. At least a small one…

' _First of all, she's being a stubborn brat, second of all, I need that money! I'm broke as hell!'_ Tsunade thought as she saw Shizune walk in with Naruto.

"She should be here soon… just wait a couple of minutes…" Shizune said as Naruto walked in quickly saying, "What seems to be the important mission?"

"I'll tell you when she gets here…" Tsunade said as she looked out the window and sighed in relief when she saw Sakura running quickly towards the office accidentally bumping into a person.

Naruto was waiting there a bit impatient, not knowing who "she" was.

After not being able to find Sakura that night, he went home and couldn't sleep. He felt confused, angry, and tired.

But early that morning, he was summoned to the Hokage's office for an important mission.

' _If it's with the Akatsuki, then I'll have to really take it my all to protect everything and everyone.'_ He thought.

As the minutes went by, Sakura quickly rushed towards the Hokage's office with her mission outfit. Finally making it to the office, she opened the door, "I'm here! I'm so sorry I'm late!"

Suddenly stopping, she saw Naruto looking at her, making her heart race.

She quickly turned her head to see Tsunade who was a bit pissed at her tardiness.

"Finally, Sakura!" Tsunade said as Sakura made her way towards her desk.

Naruto stood next to her, not daring to say anything… yet.

Tsunade explained the mission, but it didn't seem as important as they had thought. It was about getting some scroll to some rich guy not too far from here.

"You said this was important!" Naruto frowned, "Seems like some D rank mission to me…"

Tsunade sighed, "Listen, if we don't get that scroll to him quick, then bad stuff will happen!"

"Explain bad stuff!" Naruto crossed his arms, "And what about the Akatsuki?"

Sakura frowned at him and whispered, "Shut up, Naruto…!"

He immediately did so, hearing her talk for the first time to him in a while.

Tsunade smirked a bit, "So, you two will go and deliver the scroll. No excuses."

Sakura's eyes grew wide, "But why do I have to go? It's a simple mission, so there is no need for a medical kunoichi like me."

"Sakura, you may never know. Also, there's a group that wants to get this scroll. Naruto will need as much help. You are the perfect one to help him get through this. I do not want to hear anything from you, Sakura. I won't allow it."

Sakura knew she could not argue with her Hokage. She could get away from it before, but she couldn't now that Tsunade was getting persistent on this.

After a little while more of Tsunade explaining more information, she told them to leave as soon as possible and handed the scroll to Sakura.

"One more thing…" Tsunade said making both of them stop, "Kakashi, Gai, and Asuma will be following nearby… we can never be too safe with those Akatsuki, right, Naruto?"

Naruto froze and then slowly gave a nod, "Yes. I know."

She finally dismissed them and Naruto, along with Sakura stepped out the door.

"Sakura…?" Naruto said to her as they both walked together out.

"Yea…?" She said not looking at him.

He stopped in front of her and said in a stern voice, "I'm tired of waiting. I will tell you everything and you are going to listen."

Being taken back a bit from his sudden voice, she stopped and stared at him wide eyed.

"Alright… since we are going to be stuck together for a couple of days, it wouldn't hurt." Sakura mumbled as she pushed past him.

"Hey!" Naruto called out after her, "Where are you going?"

"We are going to talk, right?" She said, "Somewhere more private…"

Naruto's heart raced as he grinned widely. Without hesitation, he grabbed her arm and dragged her out towards somewhere that almost no one would go.

They finally reached towards a small pond, and after Naruto checked no one was there, he signaled her to sit down next to her on his big boulder.

She sat down and didn't look at him… she just looked at the pond and insects that were buzzing by over the pond.

"Sakura, can you please look at me?" He said as he touched her shoulder gently.

"Please make it quick…" Sakura said, "I've got to prepare everything."

Naruto stood up and stood in front of her, "Ok, then I'll move… anyways, ok, everything was a lie, Sakura! Remember when I told you that…. That I didn't love you?"

Sakura looked up and frowned, "Yea, I remember! I remember feeling like the whole world falling on me, feeling like I've been used, lied to! You made me feel like shit, Naruto!"

He quickly grabbed her shoulders and then pulled her into an embrace, "I'm so sorry, Sakura-chan!"

"No!" Sakura pushed him away, "Don't call me that!"

"Sakura, I still love you, dammit! I never stopped! I lied to you!"

Sakura pushed past him, "You really think I'm going to fall for that? Do you really want me to fall into you lies?"

Naruto frowned, "Look, I was scared, ok? I was scared of you getting hurt!"

Laughing sarcastically, Sakura cried out, "Oh! Well look! Guess you failed! I was beyond hurt, Naruto! I don't want you to be near me… And aren't you with Ino? Go and be with her, why are you wasting your time with me?"

"Ino and I were never going out! She wanted to get Chouji jealous and help me get you to notice me… it failed… for me at least." Naruto said.

Sakura shook her head, "I… I want to believe you, Naruto…"

"Then why don't you believe me?!" Naruto said while taking a step forward towards her.

Sakura shook her head, "Look, Naruto... I think that's enough, ok? I heard what you said and congrats... You told me. Now, we have a mission to complete."

His eyes grew wide as he watched her turn around. Without a thought he ran in front of her, "Hold on, but what about us?"

She frowned at him and pushed past Naruto, "There is nothing left."

But Naruto did not want to give up. He ran next to her and cried out, "Sakura-chan, wait-!"

Snapping, Sakura stopped and turned to face him, "I told you to never call me that again!"

She breathed in deeply and glared at him one last time before turning to leave.

Naruto closed his eyes and then slowly walked up to her, "Fine. I won't call you that anymore... Sakura. One last thing... I still love you and I will always love you... I don't care if you fall in love again with some other guy, I'll still love you... But in the meantime, I'll have to make you fall for me again."

With that he ran off, leaving her alone and surprise.

 _'He's lying to you..._ ' Sakura thought while surprisingly surprised at him _, 'Why am I so scared to be hurt again... By the same person?'_

* * *

"I want you three to carefully watch out for Naruto…" Tsunade told Kakashi, Gai, and Asuma, "Don't get in the way of the mission, unless if they ever need backup, but just in case, keep a good distance."

Asuma gave a nod, "Yes. We will do so, Hokage-sama."

Just then, Shizune came in quickly, "Ah, sorry to inturupt, but Kurenai is looking for you, Asuma. She says it's important."

"Is it the baby?" Asuma asked quickly.

Shizune shrugged, "She seemed fine when she spoke to me."

Looking at Tsunade, Asuma waited to be dismissed.

Tsunade waved her hand, "Go on, Asuma!"

As Asuma left, Tsunade spoke to Kakashi and Gai, "Now… I'm on a bet with Shizune… and look, I really need the money and… I need to win this bet! So, also, like… make sure those two are together by the time you all arrive! Please!"

Kakashi and Gai gave another nod, "Sure thing, Hokage-sama…!"

' _Even though you all clearly suck! I have to trust these…'_ Tsunade thought as she dismissed them.

"I see what you are doing…" Shizune said as she walked in the office, "You think they will do the job? Just watch me do my thing when they come back… _not being together_."

Tsunade crossed her arms and stood up, "Yea, you can get the money if they are together a week after they come back… and if you can somehow get them together!"

"I've watched too many soap operas to not know what to do." Shizune laughed, "Seriously though, the dramas? Good reference."

No, no it's not… not really. Actually, no, definitely not a good reference.

* * *

Sakura got to her house to prepare for the mission. She grabbed one of her mission bags and started to grab some supplies.

She also got her medical kit ready, checking it twice to make sure that nothing was left behind. But all along, she could not stop thinking about what Naruto had said to her earlier…

' _What did he mean by him not wanting me to get hurt…? That baka didn't explain… Ugh, it doesn't matter.'_ Sakura thought as she went to grab some kunais from her closet.

"This is going to be a professional relationship from now on." Sakura forced herself to say, "Nothing more… Feelings aside, you are a kunoichi, Sakura!"

' _Mission comes first… wait. I thought it was teammates first… For me it's people's health…'_ Sakura shook her head quickly. Thinking of all this made her head spin a bit.

As Sakura was coming to an end of her packing, there was a knock at her door. Opening the door, Ino rushed in yelling, "Ah! So you are. Going. To. A. Mission?"

Sakura crossed her arms, "Why do you sound so… not surprised? How did you know I was going to a mission?"

Ino sighed, "Alright. I found out by Lee… who was told by… Tsunade!"

Eyeing her suspiciously, Sakura sat down and patted the seat next to her, "By the way Ino… you said you wanted to date Naruto? Oh, whatever happened to you two?"

Gulping, Ino sat down, _'Does she know the plan?! Did Naruto somehow found out I was lying and told Sakura everything? Are these two back together and she somehow wants to tell me…? I hope so, damnit!'_

"Oh, Naruto?" Ino asked as she chuckled nervously, "What about him?"

Looking at Ino seriously, Sakura went on, "Why did you lie to me?"

' _SHE KNOWS!'_

Ino shook her head slowly, "Lie-Lie to you about what?"

"About you wanting to date Naruto because you were interested, when you actually wanted to get Choji's attention! I could have helped you somehow…!"

' _Play along, Ino!'_

Ino pretended to be embarrassed, "Ah… I'm just… so bad at this! I was embarrassed, ok? How could I ever get Choji's attention? I thought making him jealous would work…!"

Sakura gave her a sympathetic smile, "Ino… if there is anything I can do to help, trust me… I will help! But last night, I saw you two were dancing! So, is everything ok between you two now?"

' _This is so awkward!'_ Ino thought, _'Thinking like that about my teammate! Old childhood teammate! But then again, look at Naruto and Sakura…'_

"No… Choji refused me. But that's totally ok!" Ino said quickly, "I'll find someone who deserves me!"

"Why'd he do that?" Sakura asked, "Was he seeing someone else..? Or…?"

Ino gave a sigh, "He needs time… you know, to um, think. Right now, his true love is… food."

"Ah, I see." Sakura said softly, "Well… I know he'll realize sooner or later."

' _Oh, god I hope not.'_ Ino thought nervously.

Sakura got up, "Well, I better head off now to the mission-"

"Mission!" Ino called out, "That's why I came! So…"

She moved closer to Sakura and wiggled her eyebrows, "You and Naruto…? Alone out there… with no one to disturb you two…!"

Sakura scoffed and walked back to her room with Ino following, "Ino, it's not like that… I think he's lying to me again."

Ino's ears grew wide, "What? What are you talking about?"

Sitting down on her bed, Sakura said, "He said… that he still loved me… that he lied to me when he said he didn't months ago!"

Slowly sitting down next to her, Ino's mind was going wild.

' _I knew there was something suspicious about his random break up!'_

"And why don't you believe him?" Ino asked a bit mad, "He told you his mistake… and why did that idiot tell you that lie?"

Sakura shrugged, "Wanted to keep me from getting hurt… what did he mean? I don't know. But that's so stupid because I ended up getting hurt anyways!"

"Why don't you just forgive him, Sakura?" Ino asked.

"I… I don't want to get hurt again… I fear he will use me again and lie to me!"

Ino frowned, "He's shown that he still cares, why would he lie again?"

Sakura stood up and grabbed her bags, "Look, it doesn't matter now. It's too late. I just want to be safe than sorry. And from now on, this relationship will be professional."

Ino growled, "Oh, Sakura! Just accept you also love him, too! Give that boy a chance!"

Getting to the door, Sakura opened it and turned to face Ino, "Yea, I still love that baka, but I don't want to get into some mess!"

"You sound so stupid right now, Sakura! Naruto would never hurt you!" Ino said as Sakura pushed both of themselves out the door and she locked her place.

"Never hurt me?" Sakura gave a fake laugh, "He made me be in full pain all these months… I don't want to deal with that shit again. Now, I'll see you when I get back, Ino."

Before Ino could say anything, Sakura disappeared.

"Sakura, wait!" In yelled at the empty space in front of her.

"Ya see dad? I told you she was crazy!" A little boy said to the horrified parent.

"L-Let's go son!" The parent said as they quickly rushed out.

* * *

"So, ready, rival?" Gai grinned to Kakashi as Gai carried a huge hiking bag.

Kakashi sighed, "Gai… you out of all people know no to carry so much…"

"So? It's a just in case bag! One can never be too safe! And… this time I'll really have Sakura and Naruto falling for each other like… like…falling blocks!"

Kakashi shook his head as he completed his bag, "Whatever you say Gai…"

"Guys!" Asuma said as he walked up to them with his bag all ready.

"Asuma." Kakashi said, "So, what was so important with Kurenai?"

His face went immediately red, "She… she um…"

Gai and Kakashi looked at him with full confusion, "She what?" They both said.

"She recorded the whole Ninja Tay Swift dance all three of us did!"

Gai and Kakashi's eyes grew wide, "What!?"

"She's gonna put it on NinjaTube!" Asuma went on.

Gai screamed as tears streamed down his face, "What is NinjaTube!?"

Kakashi's heart started to race. The whole world would see the famous Copy Ninja doing a dance and confessing to be a swiftie!

"Nah, I'm just playing." Asuma laughed as he lit a cigarette, "She just wanted to remind me of some stuff."

Relief washed all over Kakashi and Gai's faces.

"Let's go!" Asuma called out, "We don't want those kids to leave too early now."

' _He's so gonna pay.'_ Gai and Kakashi thought as they followed Asuma.

* * *

Sakura waited out at the front gate for Naruto. She sat down at one of the trees nearby until she heard his voice.

"Sakura!" He called out, "I'm here!"

She jumped down next to him and said, "Let's go…"

They began to walk quietly next to each other, not daring to make a sound. Throughout the whole time, Sakura kept reminding herself to only focus on this mission and to forget any feelings she had right now.

"So um…." Naruto began, "You have the scroll, right?"

Sakura held out the scroll, "Yea…"

Taking a deep breath, Naruto blurted out, "Sakura, look I said I was sorry! I was scared you'd get really hurt by the Ak-"

"Naruto." Sakura said stopping and looking him dead in the eye, "We are on a mission. Try to focus on that, ok? And stop trying to explain… I… I won't be mad at you anymore."

Grinning widely, Naruto said excitedly, "So, you forgive me?! I promise to never say anything so stupid and will always be with you!"

He went to reach out for her, when she placed her hand in front of her, "Not so fast, Naruto! Don't touch me! I forgive your stupidity and pathetic excuse, but that does not necessarily mean I can fully trust you again with my feelings!"

His smile quickly disappeared. Giving a sad chuckle, he said lowly, "Heh…You… you still don't understand, do you…?"

Giving a sigh, Naruto continued on while saying, "I guess you're right. We should just start all over again."

He stopped with Sakura bumping into his shoulder, "Ouch! Na-"

Turning around, Naruto grinned at her, "Oh! I'm sorry, beautiful stranger!"

Sakura crossed her arms and went on, ignoring him.

"What is your name?" Naruto said as he ran up to her, "I'm Naruto Uzumaki!"

She looked at him oddly, "Naruto… please stop. We have to hurry and deliver this scroll."

"I really like your hair! It's so… pink!"

"Oh my god…"

* * *

Kakashi, Gai, and Asuma carefully followed Naruto and Sakura, making sure there was no threat sign of the Akatsuki.

Even though Anko and her team didn't find much of the Akatsuki's whereabouts, being careful wouldn't hurt.

"Let's see…" Kakashi told himself, "If these two still have their alertness checked…"

Suddenly there was some noise being heard. Stopping, Kakashi quickly scanned around for any threats.

Turning his head, he frowned, "Gai!"

Right there, Gai was listening with some Beats Headphones a song.

He was dancing while Asuma lip sang along while shaking his head as both suddenly did a little dance together.

"The hell?" Kakashi frowned and snatched the headphones, "This is serious. I can't believe jounin like you two are getting so distracted!"

Gai grinned, "Rival, you think too much! Don't you know how to do it now? Multi-task? The enemy will think you are distracted, making their defense low… but in reality you are full aware they are there and will surprise them! You… are not worthy of being my rival if you act all suspicious!"

Kakashi sighed, "Alright… I would rather be safe. Let's go, they are a bit too far away."

Asuma grabbed Gai's headphones while placing them on and yelled, "This is my favorite song!"

He cleared his throat and tried to "rap"…

"When I was 13… I had my first love!"

* * *

"This will take a two day walk…!" Sakura said as she jumped on a tree, "We have to hurry on and finish this mission."

Naruto followed Sakura and said, "Ok, I'll be serious now, Sakura. We're going to start all over."

"Focus, Naruto!" Sakura frowned while not looking at him.

"I'm trying to focus on you, Sakura…!" Naruto said quietly.

As the time went by during the day, both Naruto and Sakura didn't say much to each other. Naruto wanted to talk so badly with Sakura, but she wouldn't allow and wanted to "focus" on the mission. In reality, she wanted to finish the mission as soon as possible to be away from him.

The sun was setting and they were moving much faster to Sakura's pleasure and to Naruto's dismay.

"Sakura!" Naruto said stopping, "Let's go and find a spot to sleep tonight."

Sakura looked up at the sky, "I don't think so… We have to keep moving."

Before she could move again, Naruto stood in front of her, "Look, we haven't even stopped to eat! We've been eating while running around! I think it's time to stop…"

No matter how much she wanted to protest, she knew he was right. Eating and jumping through trees made her a bit sick.

"Fine…" She sighed as she took off her bag.

Suddenly both of them froze. Not saying a word, Sakura looked at Naruto and he looked at her.

They both knew it with the look.

Standing up and standing extremely close to Naruto, she whispered, "You feel that, don't you?"

He gave her a nod, "Yea, for a while now. We're being followed."

Sakura stood behind Naruto with both their backs against each other.

They looked at each other and nodded as they soon disappeared in thin air.

"What the?" Kakashi said as he arrived, "I thought they would recognize our chakra…?"

Asuma sighed, "They must be so distracted they didn't detect it…"

Gai looked around, "Hey, they are coming!"

Before they could react, Sakura came out with her fist filled with chakra and was aiming at Kakashi, when she realized and tried to stop as she tripped over some rocks and fell. When she fell, the chakra she had, accidentally hit a tree, making a huge explosion and… let's just say there's more room for a new suburban community.

"Kakashi-sensei!?" Sakura yelled out as she stood up and dusted her shorts off.

Kakashi's heart was beating fast, _'If I hadn't moved at the right time… I'd be everywhere!'_

Naruto came out of nowhere and ran up to Sakura, "Hey, are you alright?"

Asuma crossed his arms and frowned, "You kids are supposed to know our signatures…"

Sakura nervously laughed, "Whoops! Can't be too… too careful."

Gai walked up to them and grinned, "Well, at least no one was hurt! Stay more alert, next time, ok? By the way, we are…"

He looked at Kakashi and he shook his head. They had somewhat failed to keep secret.

"We are…" Gai continued, "…going to help you two on this mission!"

Sakura placed her hands on her hips, "All these jounin just for a simple mission?"

Asuma cleared his throat, "Actually, we have a different mission, but it's on the same direction as where you two are going."

All Asuma knew was that Kakashi, Gai, and him were to make sure Naruto was safe from any Akatsuki attack. He had no idea of the extra part that Tsunade told Kakashi and Gai.

Smiling, Sakura nodded, "Ok, that's good. Anyways, Naruto and I were going to find a spot to rest. Are you all doing the same?"

Looking at the sky, Kakashi gave a slow nod, "Yea… I think we will also stay. By the way, Sakura, how many tents did you bring?"

"I brought two, because I know Naruto wouldn't bring his." Sakura said as she took out her bag and began to search. As the seconds passed by, Sakura's heart started to bump fast.

' _Oh no….!'_ She thought as she dumped out everything from her bag, _'They aren't here!? I must have left them as I was quickly leaving, trying to avoid Ino! Shit!'_

"I seemed to have forgotten the tents!" Sakura said worriedly, "Naruto, did you bring yours at least?"

Nervously laughing, Naruto said, "I sort of knew you would somehow bring it…"

Gai and Kakashi both looked at each other and gave a nod.

"Oh, nooo..." Kakashi said in a fake worried voice, "Looks like we only brought 4 tents instead of five!"

Asuma didn't know what was happening with the other plan, so he said, "Actually, I brought an extr-"

But he was hit in the you-know-where by Kakashi, who laughed nervously while standing next to Asuma.

Asuma was in such pain his voice changed to a soprano. His cigarette fell as so did him on his knees, holding dearly his little spot.

With great struggle and wheezed voice, he said, "E-Excuse me."

Sakura gasped and cried out, "Asuma-Sensei! Do you need some pain reliever or anything else?"

Asuma could barely shake his head, "I-It's a-alright."

Sakura looked worried and frowned to Kakashi, "What the hell, Kakashi-sensei?"

Naruto laughed a bit while turning away.

Before Kakashi could lie some more, Gai stepped in, " _ANYWAYS_ , since there is only 4 tents, looks like you and Naruto will share."

"WHAT?!" both of them said at the same time.

Kakashi nodded, "That's right. And it looks like it will rain, too."

Asuma barely could stand up, but he looked up and frowned, "No it won't-"

BAM. He was hit once again there, by Gai this time.

"!" That was the highest pitched screech anyone had ever heard. Birds flew out of their trees, the whole world stopped rotating for half a second causing possible great disaster to the environment, I mean, even the moon stopped to be concerned about its friend, earth.

 _The hell is going on down there?_ That's what the moon thought.

"Gai-sensei!" Sakura gasped while Naruto tried his best not to laugh.

Without another word, Sakura quickly went to get some medicine for Asuma who was in the verge of tears.

Kakashi sighed and said, "Ok, Naruto, go set up your tent for Sakura and you. Well even give you the biggest one."

Naruto stopped laughing and looked at Kakashi with all seriousness, "You don't understand. I simply can't be in the same tent as her. She could kill me!"

 _'I actually do want to, but I just gotta respect her request a bit at least… If I want to regain her trust, I gotta start her way.'_ Naruto thought desperately.

"Oh, sorry. Can't have it any other way!" Kakashi said quickly as it was already getting too dark to see.

Naruto crossed his arms, "Why can't you two share a tent?"

Gai sighed, "We are grown men. We can fit I'm one small tent! Do you know how uncomfortable that would be, kid? No leg room!"

Naruto looked confused, "Everything you do seems uncomfortable!"

Sakura finally came back with medicine and told Asuma, who was still on the floor, "Alright, here take this. I don't think, it's that damaged for me to us my chakra. But if it continues to hurt, I'll have to."

Asuma nodded and took his medicine with a shaking hand.

Sakura looked up to see Naruto arguing with both Gai and Kakashi.

"I just can't be in the same place as her!" Naruto yelled annoyed.

She frowned, _'Trying to win my heart back, my f-ckin' ass! This idiot here is now acting as if he doesn't want me around! I knew it.'_

Sakura took a deep breath and stood up. She walked over to them and said loudly, "Fine! I'll sleep outside then, you jerk! I don't wanna be near you, either!"

Naruto gulped, _'I-Isn't that what she wants?! Wait, Sakura, I'll change my mind!'_

Gai suddenly said, "Sorry, kids, but both of you at the same tent. Together. And if anyone sleeps outside in the rain, you will be sick."

Kakashi nodded, "Yes, and sick shinobi will slow down this important mission, leading us to fail. This isn't about you two."

Kakashi, Gai, and barely conscious Asuma all thought _'lol it actually is.'_

Gai pointed his finger at them and said, "So! It's either your whiny un-youthful ways! Or focus on the real thing! Being shinobi!"

Sakura and Naruto knew they couldn't go against that. The mission always came first.

Sighing with defeat, Sakura softly asked, "Where's our tent?"

* * *

 **I tried updating days ago, but of course… my laptop. And I tried with mobile, but it's too hard. But yea, hopefully, no promises, but hopefully I'll update tomorrow! Thanks for all the support! You all rock!**


	14. Mini Pause

**CH14: Mini Pause**

* * *

Sakura followed Gai to retrieve the tent. Gai handed her the tent and they all found a good spot to stay the night.

Quickly, Asuma made a fire and some dinner as Gai set the tents for the rest.

Sakura looked at the tents Gai set up and her mouth went wide. She couldn't believe her eyes.

As Naruto was reading the instruction to their tiny tent, Sakura walked over to Gai.

"Gai-sensei!" Sakura crossed her arms.

"Yes?" Gai said as he dusted off the giant tents.

"These tents are huge!" Sakura pointed out to the three giant tents that looked like it belonged to a rich king.

She opened on and pointed in with an annoyed face, "Seriously? This one has a Jacuzzi!"

Kakashi walked in and grinned, "Yea, I call dibs on this one!"

Frowning, Sakura and walked to the next one, "And this one has a complete movie theater set!?"

Once again, Kakashi walked up and went inside that tent, "I call dibs on this one, too."

Finally, Sakura opened the last one, "A complete cozy living room with a fireplace and minibar!? How do you all fit this inside!?"

Gai cleared his throat, "Well, you haven't seen the best! There are master beds behind this!"

"Master beds!?" Sakura yelled as Kakashi was about to speak. She looked at him and cried out, "Yes! I know, Kakashi-sensei, you call dibs on this!"

"Actually…" Kakashi said, "I just wanted to say that I do not want to call dibs on this one… the sake tastes weird."

Gai frowned at Kakashi, "Hey, that's some good stuff! And it's not sake, its tequila."

Sakura looked at Naruto struggling to set up the small tent and turned her head to Gai.

"All I'm saying is…" Sakura started out calmly then yelled, "That this is bullshit! Those tents can fit ten people in!"

Asuma walked in and yelled, "I want the one with the Jacuzzi!"

"Sorry, Asuma…" Kakashi said as he stretched his arms, "I called it."

"Ok… the theater one then."

"Called it too." Kakashi yawned.

Gai and Sakura ignored them in the back and he told her, "Look, there's nothing we can do. Why don't you go and help Naruto with your youthful skills! I'm sure he needs the help."

Just then they heard a loud thump and turned their heads to see Naruto struggling to get out as he was tangled in.

Sakura looked at him hopelessly and walked towards him. She turned her head and yelled out, "I still think this is bull!"

Pulling the tent away from Naruto, she shook her head at him.

"Sorry…" He said, "I couldn't set it up right. Those instructions are in a different language!"

Sakura grabbed the instructions and sighed, "They were upside down, Naruto…"

Carefully Sakura helped Naruto set up the tent and she was right. It was a small tent.

"How are we going to fit?" Sakura asked, "I mean, I don't think we will both fit!"

"If you want…" Naruto said quietly, "I can sleep outside…"

Suddenly Gai popped out of nowhere, "No! You cannot!"

He wiggled his fingers at them and said in a spooky voice, "Remember… Remember the mission… ooo!"

Sakura stretched her arms, "Its fine. We'll find a way."

Shoving them towards the tent, Gai said, "Well go on! Now! Now!"

"It's still early!" Naruto said as he pushed back.

Just then, Asuma shouted, "Who's hungry?"

Naruto grinned, "I'm starving!"

He ran up to Asuma and grinned, "What's for dinner, Asuma-sensei?"

Asuma gave a loud 'dad' laugh, "You're not hungry!"

Sakura walked up to them and sweat-dropped, "I think you're prepared to be a dad with your lame jokes…"

Turns out Asuma made some soup and even though it seemed questionable, they were too hungry to ask.

Kakashi sat next to Sakura squishing her towards Naruto, as Gai sat next to Naruto, squishing him towards Sakura.

"K-Kakashi-sensei!" Sakura frowned as she couldn't even reach her food properly, "You're squishing us!"

He looked over and his eyes grew wide, _'Shit, we over did it!'_

"Whoops!" He nervously laughed as he scooted a bit away.

Naruto grinned, "Sakura! You're hair smells nice!"

She looked at him, almost touching his face with hers, "I um, used a new shampoo…"

"So did I!" He said awkwardly while turning his head.

' _Why am I so nervous when I'm this close to her?'_ He asked himself as he looked to the fire.

"That's good…" Sakura mumbled as she got up and placed her bowl away.

' _I'm so tired…'_ Sakura thought as she yawned, "So, who's going to stay watch?"

Naruto stood next to her as Kakashi and Gai looked at each other and communicated with some nods.

Kakashi finally spoke, "I'll be on watch tonight. You all go to sleep."

"Are you sure?" Sakura asked, "I can go."

He shook his head, "You seem pretty tired. Go on and sleep."

Agreeing, Sakura and Naruto said their goodnight and both awkwardly went to the tent together.

"Um..." Naruto began, "You can go in first."

Sakura got in and sat down on her side, watching Naruto get in.

He sat next to her, but trying to leave some personal space. Both were very quiet, but soon Naruto spoke, "Don't worry; I won't do anything stupid while you're asleep."

She looked at him with small smile, "Yea… you better not try anything fishy…!"

But the tent was so small, they had to at least touch shoulders.

 _'Biggest tent, my ass...'_ Sakura sighed.

"I um..." Sakura began, "I guess I'll go to sleep."

Naruto shook his head and said, "Wait, Sakura..."

Meanwhile outside the tent...

"I don't think that will be enough." Asuma said, "We need to add something else!"

Kakashi and Gai had told Asuma about everything of the little plan to help Tsunade win the bet. Both thought deeply on how to make it work. And then Gai's lightbulb went on, "I know!"

Going to his tent, he later brought out a big boom box.

Asuma looked wide eyed, "How the hell did you get that all the way here?"

Gai smirked, "Watch and learn, my students, as the real master of love shows you how it's done."

Tiptoeing to Sakura and Naruto's tent, he grinned evilly and pressed play.

Inside the tent, right before Gai pressed play, Naruto grabbed Sakura's shoulder.

"Sakura..." he began, "There's something... I don't think you understood."

Sakura watched him carefully "...Yes?"

 _'No, just turn around!'_ She thought, _'He made you cry! He doesn't deserve a second chance!'_

Naruto took a deep breath and said, "I honestly think y-"

All of a sudden, Nicki Minaj's "stupid hoe" started to play loudly outside the tent.

 _You a stupid hoe, you a, you a stupid hoe [x3]_

 _You a stupid hoe, (yeah) you a, you a stupid hoe-_

It was suddenly stopped along with loud cussing coming from Gai outside the tent.

Sakura frowned and yelled, "What!? You think I'm a stupid hoe? Did you set this up, Naruto!?"

Naruto held his hands in defense, "What? No, I didn't, honestly!"

Sakura sat up with a fist ready to punch, filled with chakra, "I'm about to knock you out to next week!"

But suddenly, the song "Thinking Out Loud" by Ed Sheeran started to play outside.

 _When your legs don't work like they used to before_

 _And I can't sweep you off of your feet_

 _Will your mouth still remember the taste of my love?_

 _Will your eyes still smile from your cheeks?_

Both of them looked at each other and blushed a bit. They froze at this other sudden thing playing in the back.

 _And, darling, I will be loving you 'til we're 70_

 _And, baby, my heart could still fall as hard at 23_

 _And I'm thinking 'bout how people fall in love in mysterious ways_

 _Maybe just the touch of a hand_

 _Well, me - I fall in love with you every single day_

 _And I just wanna tell you I am_

Sakura slowly placed down her fist and tried to avoid eye contact with him.

"Um…" Sakura said lowly, "I think I'm going to check on them…"

Naruto couldn't take this anymore. No matter what his mind was going against, his hand moved on by itself to reach hers.

 _So honey now_

 _Take me into your loving arms_

 _Kiss me under the light of a thousand stars_

 _Place your head on my beating heart_

 _I'm thinking out loud_

 _Maybe we found love right where we are_

He carefully held Sakura's cheek with his other hand, making her head turn towards him.

"Sakura… Wait." He said firmly as he stared at her eyes. She could not move, no matter how much her mind yelled her to.

 _When my hair's all but gone and my memory fades_

 _And the crowds don't remember my name_

 _When my hands don't play the strings the same way (mmm...)_

 _I know you will still love me the same_

Naruto leaned in closer and closer, slowly.

Sakura's heart started to thump loudly in her chest. She didn't dare to move at all, ignoring the protests in her head.

 _'Cause honey your soul could never grow old, it's evergreen_

 _And, baby, your smile's forever in my mind and memory_

 _I'm thinking 'bout how people fall in love in mysterious ways_

 _Maybe it's all part of a plan_

 _Well, I'll just keep on making the same mistakes_

 _Hoping that you'll understand_

 _'It feels like...'_ She thought while also leaning forward.

 _That, baby, now_

 _Take me into your loving arms_

 _Kiss me under the light of a thousand stars_

 _Place your head on my beating heart_

 _Thinking out loud_

 _Maybe we found love right where we are (oh ohh)_

Closing their eyes, their lips finally met.

 _'Feels like... The first time we shared a kiss.'_

Naruto wrapped his hand around her waist, as she wrapped her arms around his neck.

 _La la la la la la la la lo-ud_

They both continued to kiss, as if they wouldn't see each other again in forever. Naruto couldn't stop, he loved feeling her lips on his. The smell of her made him go crazy as he softly tugged her hair.

Sakura didn't want to stop, she had missed kissing him like this, being this close to him.

 _So, baby, now_

 _Take me into your loving arms_

 _Kiss me under the light of a thousand stars_

 _Oh, darling, place your head on my beating heart_

 _I'm thinking out loud_

 _Maybe we found love right where we are_

 _Oh, baby, we found love right where we are_

 _And we found love right where we are_

"Sakura..." He whispered while kissing her again.

But suddenly, his eyes grew wide to what was happening. Sakura did the same thing as both their hearts began to pound hard against their chests.

Both of them stopped kissing but didn't move an inch.

She looked at him, not knowing what to say or do, it was all going way too fast for her to act. Looking away, Sakura tried to hide her blushing face, "I-I um…" He was still holding her, but slowly letting go.

With a lot of struggle and hesitation, Naruto spoke, "I'm... I'm sorry, Sakura. I shouldn't have done that. I know that I told you I wouldn't do anything stupid… I'm so sorry. But, you kissed back."

Gulping, Sakura turned her body away from him and said, "That-That doesn't mean anything."

Naruto frowned, "Yes it does! You still love me, don't you?"

"You caught me by surprise!" She protested.

Not wanting to let go of this topic, Naruto pushed on, "So, whenever someone _surprisingly_ kisses you, you're going to kiss back? You'd do that if you wanted to or punch them if you didn't… You could've punched me, but you didn't."

Sakura didn't say anything. She just stayed still, not daring to look at him.

"Don't ignore me, please, Sakura…" He begged as he grabbed her hand, "I know you're not over me like I'm not over you."

"I can't…" She whispered while turning her head towards him, "I can't do this… what if you're lying again? What if I get my hopes up and then you tell me this was a joke all along?"

"But this is serious!" He said, "I know what I said was-"

"It was very painful! Please… leave me alone… I promised myself this would be professional and so far it isn't. Let's just pretend this never happened, ok?"

He leaned back a bit and looked at her, "We can't pretend forever, Sakura. But fine. I'll pretend."

Slowly he let go of her hand, but gave her one last look before lying down, facing away from her.

"Goodnight, Sakura."

Sakura didn't say anything but laid down on her side, facing away from him.

* * *

Outside the tent, Gai smiled at the tent Naruto and Sakura were stating at.

"Job well done." Gai said to himself, "Those two will be together now!"

Kakashi sighed, "Yea, great going at ruining the moment with that first song!"

Asuma walked in confused as hell, "Why didn't you bring your ninjaIpod? Or N¡njaSpeaker? A cassette, really?"

Gai frowned, "Hey it's the only cassette I have!"

Asuma rolled his eyes, "I'm pretty sure Ninja Minaj or Ed Shinobiran didn't record their music on cassette!"

Gai pulled his hair, "I accidentally recorded their songs over this one, ok?"

Kakashi was about to go stand watch when he suddenly realized, "Oh no..."

"What?" asked Asuma.

"Let's... Just hope Gai's plan didn't work out too well."

Gai looked at him confused, "What do you mean?"

Kakashi wiggled his eyebrows and shuffled awkwardly, "I mean what they do the... You know, the bow-chika-bow-wow...?"

Asuma and Gai had their eyes twitching and both said, "God I hope not."

Asuma then frowned, "Why would they suddenly do that, though?"

Kakashi sighed, "Haven't you seen those cheesy romantic movies?"

Gai patted Kakashi's back, "You need to stop reading those things! And seeing them!"

"I don't wanna hear them get excited!" Kakashi blushed, "Let's just check on them."

Asuma held out a flashlight, "I'll do it."

With great fear Asuma slowly approached the tent.

Suspense music played loudly in the background. Each second was making his heart pound fast against his chest.

DUN… DUNDUN! DUN NA NAAAA!

Frowning, Asuma turned to Gai, "Turn off your damn boombox!"

"Oops, sorry!" Gai loudly whispered as he turned it off.

Asuma continued to walk forward and finally to the tent.

"Ok... Nothing suspicious yet." he whispered to himself.

Asuma then said loudly, "Um, Naruto? Sakura?"

A small tired voice from Naruto said out, "Yes?"

Asuma gulp and said, "Can I... Come in? Pause?"

Asuma's heart was beating fast as Kakshi and Gai waited anxiously to what could possibly scar Asuma for life.

Naruto unzipped the tent ad said, "Is something wrong, Asuma-sensei? By the way, what was that music about? Were you all just jamming…?"

Asuma then quickly lit the tent with his flashlight quickly.

"Umm, yea! Gai thought it'd be cool to listen to something…"

Sakura was on her side, far from Naruto and everything was... Appropriate.

Asuma gave a nervous chuckle, "Oh, no and I'm just checking to make sure you both don't kill yourselves."

Sakura then said, "Don't worry. We won't even talk to each other, less likely touch each other…" She then yelled, "If that's what you perverted aliens were thinking!"

Asuma nervously laughed, "Yeeeaaaahhhh , stay safe kids."

Quickly, he got out and wiped off the sweat off of his forehead. He looked up and saw Kakashi and Gai waiting in fear at the top of the hill.

Asuma gave a thumbs up and thought _'Oh god, I'm gonna be the most awkward dad.'_

* * *

At dawn, Sakura opened her eyes slowly to see someone's chest slowing rising and falling.

She stayed still as she felt someone's arm wrapped around her. She had her head on Naruto's chest and her arm on top of his torso.

Immedietly, she wanted to pull away, not knowing how the hell she ended up like this. But she felt his arm soflty tightening around her. Looking up at him, she saw him peacefully sleeping.

 _'I... I want to stay like this a bit longer. Even if it's some stupid illusion…'_ She smiled a bit before closing her eyes, pretending to be asleep.

What she didn't know, was that Naruto was also awake, not daring to move an inch.

 _'Just a bit longer...'_ He thought while pretending to be asleep.

They stayed like that for only a couple of minutes because they were interrupted by a loud crash outside making them both wake up immediately.

"What was that?" Sakura asked as she got out her kunai from one of her pouches.

Naruto did the same and slowly opened the tent.

"Whoops!" Gai yelled out cheerfully, "I was doing my dawn exercises and accidently knocked down this tree!"

Putting her weapon away, Sakura got out of the tent and stretched, "Time to get going…"

* * *

 **Y'all I'm so sorry it's so short! Its originally longer, but I just got home now and couldn't edit the other half because I'm so tired… I wanted to upload days ago, too, but my life is just like "lmao nope". And haha ok that Asuma check up scene is gonna be relevant in the future chapters, sorta… Just trust me.**


	15. Oh no

CH15: Oh no…

* * *

Sakura gave out a yawn as she blinked a bit. Looking outside where the rest of the group was, she saw Gai doing his normal routine.

"Now!" Gai said loudly, "5,000 upside down sit-ups!"

Naruto's eye twitched a bit, "F-Five thousand?"

Gai nodded, "Join me! It'll feel so good afterwards, trust me."

Sakura grinned, "Yea, Naruto! Why don't you? I'll go and get some water in the meantime."

Before Naruto could protest, Gai dragged him to the nearest tree and they both hung upside down.

"One!" Gai yelled as he began.

In the meantime, Sakura walked out towards a nearby stream and washed her face. Last night's memories, made her a bit uneasy.

' _I told him this was going to be professional… I failed miserably…'_

But remembering him made her smile a bit. She missed him so much, she hated to admit it. Her smile grew wide as she heard him struggling with Gai back there.

" _Wait!"_ Sakura could hear Naruto as she laughed a bit, "He's such a dork…"

She stopped, realizing what she was doing and looked at her reflection. She stared at herself and slowly touched her lips.

"What if… he's not lying again?" She asked herself, "… But what if he is?"

She gave out a frustrated sigh and splashed the water with her hand, "Why'd he lie in the first place? Idiot…"

Deciding to go back, Sakura didn't want to think about it anymore. She had to focus on this mission and to get it done.

Kakashi looked around and saw Gai having his morning training with a very troubled looking Naruto.

"Let's go!" Gai yelled as he quickened his pace, "Only 4,782 left! … 81, 80, 79…!"

"H-Hold up!" Naruto yelled as he tried to catch up.

Kakashi sighed as he pressed a random button and that made the tent somehow be put away.

Asuma came out while drinking some water, "Good morning, Kakashi!"

"Good morning… So, what next should we do?" He asked Asuma.

"Get out of the way, obviously…" Asuma said as he began to look for something to eat, "We'll be ahead to 'make sure no enemy is near'… wait. That's what we have to do anyways. Also, I have this-"

Kakashi slapped his own forehead, "You know what? Just follow my lead…"

All of a sudden, with an extremely fake worried voice, Kakashi cried out, "Oh, no…! _Whhaatt?_ We have to evacuate _immedietly…_?!"

Gai stopped and jumped down, making Naruto fall to the ground.

"What was that, rival?" Gai said as he jogged up to him, "Evacuate, for what?"

Kakashi moved his eyes, signaling Gai it was about the "special" mission.

"Oh! Oh!" Gai quickly said and soon played along with the fake worried voice, "I mean, geezzzz you're so right! We have to leave!"

Asuma scoffed, "Geez?"

Just then, Sakura walked in, "What's going on?"

Kakashi turned to her and said sadly, "We have to leave now. We would _love_ to stay with you two, but we must move now. But don't worry, we won't be far if you need help."

Sakura slowly nodded, "Ok… So, you won't be traveling with us anymore?"

Asuma shook his head, "No, not really. This mission is very important, so we don't want to place you two in danger. Stay safe, ok?"

' _Oh, no…_ ' Sakura thought, _'It's going to be so awkward now…'_

"Um, yea, sure! Are you leaving immediately?" Sakura asked.

Kakashi nodded, "Yes, the faster the better. Adios mis amigos!"

Naruto frowned, "Wha-?"

Before they could say anything, the trio started their way.

"Goodbye…?" Sakura said as they left, "You forgot your tents!"

Gai stopped and turned, "You can keep them! We'll be staying at an inn, I think."

Naruto and Sakura then heard Kakashi speak, "We should have brought Yamato, so he could make us a nice place to stay in."

As they left, Sakura turned to Naruto, "Let's pick this up. We have to also leave."

None of them said a word as they quickly picked up the place.

"Are you hungry?" Naruto suddenly asked.

Sakura looked at him holding some plate with a pink sticky note on top of the food.

"What the..?" She said as she took the note and read it out loud, "For Sakura-chan and Naruto-kun… from Asuma-sensei-sama-almighty-lord-of-the-rings-king-monarch-butterfly."

Both looked at each other and sighed.

"Anyways… I guess…" Sakura said as she took the mysterious food in her fingertips. Tasting the disgusting flavor, she immediately spit it out, "Yuck! What is this!?"

* * *

"What was it?" Gai asked Asuma as they observed Sakura reacting to Asuma's food.

"Hmm hmmm…" Asuma chuckled darkly, "Love potion."

Kakashi didn't even react. He didn't even know how to.

"Love potion!?" Gai almost yelled out, "We are struggling to keep these two together and you had a love potion all along!?"

Kakashi then eyed Asuma with doubt, "You didn't use that on Kurenai, right?"

Scoffing, Asuma crossed his arms, "You're kidding, right? Kurenai fell for me on her own…! Besides… I got this as a final way out."

Gai wiggled his eyebrows, "But where did you get this?"

"Black market." Asuma simply said as he got out binoculars to see Naruto also try to taste the food.

"You know…" Kakashi said as he activated his sharingan, "We can use my eye."

Asuma continued to look, "Show off… And that's not its real purpose!"

* * *

"I dunno, Sakura… it does taste kindda good." Naruto said as he got more to eat.

"You can have it then." Sakura said as she got her bag, "Let's just go…"

They both began to walk towards their destination for a while, until Sakura was feeling her head hurt a little.

She didn't say anything as they both walked quietly, but the pain was getting worse.

After a while, Sakura forced herself to go on, without showing any signs of pain.

"Hey, Sakura." Naruto said, "We should stop at the nearest town to get some food, I'm starving."

Sakura nodded, "Um, yea, sure!"

"Also…" Naruto said as he held his head, "My head has been killing me!"

Her eyes grew wide, "Yours, too? So is mine! Do you think there was something in that food that made us react like this?"

But Naruto quickly dismissed the idea, "No, I don't think so."

Taking a deep breath, Sakura said, "Here, let me check your head…"

He sat down on a boulder and she sat next to him, examining him with her chakra.

"I… I don't see anything…! It's all perfectly normal, if it was a simple headache, I would see something…" Sakura went on confused, "But I don't see anything!"

Naruto looked at her a bit worried, "Go check yourself."

Without hesitating, Sakura checked her head and it was the same result, "What is this? Naruto, I really think there was something in that food."

After a while, Naruto nodded, "I guess… We are both allergic to Asuma's food… I feel sorry for his kid and Kurenai."

Sakura chuckled a bit, "Yea… I guess you're right."

Naruto smiled a bit seeing her. He missed seeing her grin and laugh at his stupid jokes. He remembered when they would spend afternoons just seeing who could tell the craziest story.

"I think the pain's going away…" Sakura said as she stood up, "Are you feeling ok?"

Naruto felt his head and nodded, "Yea, it's like it disappeared!"

Sakura grinned, "Good! Let's continue to the next town to eat, I'm also getting a bit hungry."

As they continued to walk forward, Asuma stared in confusion, "I don't get it! They should be yelling how much they love each other by now!"

Gai sighed, "Or maybe… they already do, that it won't make any effect!"

But Asuma quickly shook his head, "No, you don't get it. This potion was for this exact thing! I know they love each other, this would just force it out!"

Kakashi looked at him, "Wait… something's happening!"

All three watched in horror as Naruto and Sakura were singing loudly, as if they were super drunk.

"What the?!" Asuma yelled, "I want my money back!"

Naruto laughed as he watched Sakura run to a boulder and step on it while singing terribly.

"I believe I can flyy!" Sakura laughed as she lazily spun around, "Weee!"

Naruto laughed so loudly, he fell to the ground holding his stomach, "S-Sakura-chan! Do it again! Do it again!"

Sakura jumped off and spun around, causing her to fall. She laughed really hard with Naruto, tears were coming out of their eyes.

She was laughing and pointed to his face, "N-Naruto! W-What, HA HA, what happened to your face?! HA! Did-Did a cat f-ck you up!?"

Kakashi looked at Asuma, "Something's wrong… Asuma, how do we deactivate this? They sound like… drunk idiots that laugh at every stupid thing!"

Asuma shook his head as he disappointedly watched them, "I don't know…"

Naruto and Sakura got up, continuing to laugh. Sakura wrapped her arm around Naruto's shoulder as he did the same to her.

"S-Sakura-chan!" Naruto giggled, "I've had a crush on you since we were kids!"

Sakura laughed, "You're such a liar! _I'm_ the one that's had a crush on you!"

They both slowed down on the laughing and then looked at each other in the eyes. Slowly, they both began to chuckle.

"Ha ha!" Naruto grinned, "You had a crush on me!"

Sakura frowned, but continued to chuckle, "So did you! _Bbbaaakkkaaa_ …!"

"Sakura-chan! Sakura-chan!" Naruto said suddenly stopping her, "Let's get married!"

Sakura's eyes grew wide, "Marriage!? Yeah! Let's get married!"

Naruto grabbed Sakura's hand and they both began to spin around. They both laughed as they went on faster until they let go and got dizzy.

"Wait!" Sakura said as she tumbled over to Naruto's side, "I… I have to invite Ino! She's like, so crazy… I love Ino… she's my best best best best best friend!"

Sakura started to laugh some more as Naruto nodded, "Also, Tsunade-baa-chan!"

They both laughed as they wobbled on to the village. Asuma and the rest watched in horror.

"Some love potion!" Gai frowned, "What if they get hurt?"

"We'll be here for them!" Asuma frowned, "Besides… it's working?"

Kakashi shook his head, "But not like this! This is terrible! When they come to their senses, they will probably never speak to each other because of the embarrassment!"

Sakura stopped laughing and looked at Naruto, "Where's my wedding ring!?"

Naruto stopped and laughed, "Ha ha! You don't have one!"

She laughed, too and dragged him to the woods, "Find me a ring!"

As Sakura stopped dragging him, Naruto picked up a small flower and chuckled loudly as he wrapped it around her finger, "T-There! HA HA!"

They both laughed loudly, and filled the forest with embarrassing laughs.

"Ok, ok, wait!" Naruto said as he took the ring away, "Sakura-chan…"

Sakura tried not to laugh as Naruto tried to be "serious", "Sakura-chan… pffftttt… Do you want me to be your forever boyfriend?"

"Yea! Forever boyfriend!" Sakura snickered, "I'll be your forever girlfriend!"

They stood there giggling like little kids.

Sakura got close to Naruto and smiled, "Naruto…!"

Naruto gave a grin, "Yes?"

"Race you!" Sakura yelled as she ran, making Naruto to quickly react and run after her.

They both laughed some more as they ran through the forest, loudly.

Asuma's eye was twitching, "T-That's what they want to do in real life?! To have races after getting married!?"

Kakashi didn't say anything, but watch Sakura and Naruto tumble over some flowers and laugh like maniacs.

Gai looked at Asuma, "Every couple is different… Hold on, they are nearing the village!"

The three looked over and saw Sakura and Naruto holding hands as they approached the village.

"Look!" Naruto yelled out to the people outside of the village. He held his had that was holding Sakura's, "We're married!"

The civilians nodded slowly as they awkwardly tried not to make eye contact anymore.

Sakura laughed and yelled, "I love you, Naruto!"

"Me, too, Sakura-chan!"

Then they both stopped walking and laughed really hard, causing people to panic a bit.

"Father." A little girl said, "Are they drunk?"

The father watched Naruto and Sakura and took a deep breath as he dramatically said, "Yes, child of mine… Guess you could say… they're dunk in love."

Naruto and Sakura both giggled past them and entered the village.

"Sakura-chan!" Naruto said as he walked in, "I'm gonna be hokage!"

Sakura giggled some more, "Weeee!"

An old lady watched them in horror, "Drunk this early?!"

Naruto looked at her and waved, "Hey! Hey! Hey you! Guess what!?"

The old lady sniffed at him, "You both don't smell like alcohol… What drug is this?"

' _I gotta hook myself with this!'_ The old lady thought.

Sakura jumped up and down, "Guess, granny! Guess!"

Taking a step away, the old lady asked, "…What?"

Saying together, Naruto and Sakura said, "We're married!"

They suddenly snickered loudly as the old lady slowly nodded, "Ah… that's good, sweeties…"

Naruto laughed and tried to speak, "W-We're gonna have like… HA HA, like 12 kids!"

Sakura laughed louder, "No we're not! HA HA HA, we're gonna have a thousand kids!"

They both broke out in laughter as the old lady found this opportunity to escape.

"No!" Naruto laughed, "Two thousand kids!"

"Three thousand!" Sakura laughed some more.

"Four million!"

Sakura made a weird face, "No, no! One million quadrillion billion thousand!"

Naruto laughed hard, "T-To infinity!"

"HOW ABOUT NONE!" A man yelled as he grabbed them both by the collar, "Who are you two, anyways?"

Sakura looked at the man and chuckled, "Huh, huh, I'm Sakura Uzumaki…!"

Naruto grinned, "Hey! I like your last name, Sakura-chan!"

The man sighed, "Alright, you two seem to be leaf shinobi… Strange."

Kakashi couldn't stand it anymore. He had to do something.

Without another thought, Kakashi jumped in, "Ah! Excuse, me!"

The man glared at him, "Are these your 'married couple'?"

Kakashi nodded, "Ah, yea, they took something by accident, thanks for finding them!"

Sakura looked at Kakashi and snickered, "Kakashi-sensei… why do you always cover you eye?"

Naruto laughed as Kakashi dragged both of them, "Kaka-sensei! Kaka-sensei! I'm married! You're gonna be a grandpa to a quadrillion kids!"

Naruto and Sakura laughed loudly while looking at each other.

Kakashi sighed as Asuma and Gai made it with him.

"Let's get them to rest." Gai suggested as they went towards a nearby inn.

"Sakura-chan! Sakura-chan!" Naruto said as he pointed, "Look! We can finally have that pillow fight!"

Sakura giggled, "Oh, yea! I beat you last time! Ha HA!"

Asuma walked up to the front desk, "Yea, we're gonna need a couple of rooms…"

Sakura let go of Kakashi's grip and cried out, "Naruto and I are going to share a room! We have to! We are married!"

Kakashi sighed as he pulled her back, hearing Sakura and Naruto laugh loudly.

Gai chuckled nervously, "These kids! Always getting high! Am I, right? Wrong way to use their youth!"

The front desk person slowly nodded, "Yea, here are the keys to your rooms…"

Kakashi smiled, "Thank you!"

They reached the stairs and Naruto stood up, "H-Hold up… Hold up… Sakura… let me carry you…"

Asuma and Gai sighed as they slapped their own foreheads.

But Naruto couldn't since both of them kept laughing and falling.

Kakashi grabbed Sakura and lifted her up as Gai lifted up Naruto.

"You take those rooms over there." Kakashi said, "Sakura and I will take these rooms."

As they agreed and went separate ways, Sakura started to kick around, "Wait! Wait! Where's Naruto!? I have to be with Naruto! I've been away from him for too long!"

"Sakura, please stop…" Kakashi sighed, "Look, you'll see him again. You need to rest."

"Kakashi!" Asuma called out, "I got a room with two beds. We can place them there. Come over here!"

Kakashi nodded, "Alright."

They both entered the room with two beds and let Naruto and Sakura go.

"Weee!" Naruto and Sakura yelled as they grabbed the pillows.

"Reaady?!" They both yelled.

Asuma frowned, "They should be very tired now… they'll fall asleep soon. Hopefully."

He sighed, "I'm gonna be a terrible father."

Sakura and Naruto laughed as they fought with their pillows and making a big mess.

Kakashi placed his hands in his pockets, "Guess they really just want to have some fun… and act like little kids."

Gai crossed his arms, "I'm getting hungry… Asuma, I think it's best if we bring them back."

Asuma nodded, "I suppose so, too…"

Just then, Naruto got up and said, "Sakura-chan! Remember-Remember when I took you out to eat at that place?"

Sakura laughed and threw a pillow at him, "I had to pay!"

They both continued to have their pillow fight while yelling out all these things out about their past.

Kakashi sat down, "Gai, go get some food…"

Of course, when they brought the food, Naruto and Sakura quickly went to eat it all.

"Damn!" Kakashi 's eyes grew wide, "They were hungry!"

Gai frowned, "Of course! Don't you see what Asuma gave them?"

After what seemed like forever, Sakura and Naruto both fell asleep on the floor, completely knocked out.

"FINALLY!" Asuma yelled out, "It's already midnight! I'm starving!"

Kakashi went to pick up Sakura and placed her in bed as Gai placed Naruto in the other bed.

Gai had dark circles under his eyes as so did Kakashi with Asuma.

Asuma squatted down and buried his face with his hands, "I'm going to be the worst parent ever!"

"Ah, quiet." Kakashi said, "Look, since I stayed up to watch and this was Asuma's 'idea', he's going to stay watch while Gai and I sleep."

Gai did not hesitate, "Sure thing! Bye!"

Asuma gave out a desperate cry, "Why! Never again will I buy from the black market!"

Kakashi gave him a pat on the back before leaving, "Um, god luck if they wake up the same way they fell asleep. Night!"

Asuma closed the door after Kakashi left and slowly walked over to a chair. He sat down and stared at them sleeping peacefully.

But as the hours went by, Asuma's eyes felt so heavy like steel. He blinked a few times to try and stay watch over the place, but it was no use.

His eyes slowly started to close, as his head lowered itself on his shoulder, leaning on the chair. After a few minutes, he began to snore loudly.

* * *

Something wasn't feeling right for Sakura. She couldn't help but feel weird, it was like she was trapped somewhere.

Sakura moved around her bed, as if she were struggling in a dream. She groaned and twisted and turned until she opened her eyes with a gasp.

There was nothing heard at all. She stayed still and saw she was on a bed.

' _What the…?'_ Sakura thought as she carefully stayed still in case she was in enemy territory.

She slowly turned around to see Naruto sleeping peacefully on another bed.

' _Naruto…?'_ She frowned, _'What are we doing here?'_

Just then, Naruto's eyes opened wide as he sat up yelling, "Ahh!"

Sakura could not stop him, but she whispered loudly, "Shut up!"

Asuma woke up choking on his own spit, trying to get up from the sudden loud noise.

"Asuma-sensei!" Sakura called out as she ran up to him. After a while, Asuma's spirit came back, "I'm fine… I'm fine…"

Sakura looked around as Naruto was slowly getting out.

"Asuma-sensei… what happened?" Sakura asked, "Where are we?"

Asuma got up, "Don't worry… you're not in trouble. We just, um, found you two knocked out yesterday in the middle of the road. Yea."

Sakura's eyes grew wide, "We've been asleep for a whole day?! Oh, no, what about the mission? Naruto and I still need to deliver the scroll!"

Naruto walked up to them, "What? What happened to us, why were we knocked out?"

Just then Kakashi and Gai walked in both saying, "We heard a cry, what happened?"

Sakura crossed her arms, "What happened to us? Did you find a medical to see what was wrong?"

Kakashi shook his head, "No. We just… brought you here."

Gai nodded, "Also, don't worry about your mission. Tsunade just sent a message where it had been canceled."

"What?" Sakura asked confused, "How? Where is the message?"

Quickly, Gai said, "It um, already left! Sorry, you know how un-advanced this ninja world is besides us having ridiculously advanced stuff…? We don't have phones."

Naruto stared at him with confusion, "…What?"

Sakura ran her fingers through her hair, "So, we just head back to Konoha now?"

Asuma looked at Sakura, "Sakura… do you remember anything at all?"

Naruto looked at her, too, "Hey, I don't remember anything. I just remember my head hurting and then feeling better… then everything goes blank."

"Same here." Sakura said to Asuma.

He turned around and frowned as he mubbled to himself, "I'm so gonna leave a bad review on that seller's page!"

 _AsumaCoolSensei: This is the WORST product EVER! DO NOT BUY! Tried it out on these kids and it does NOT work! FALSE advertisement! Negative stars!_

 _At:AsumaCoolSensei: Hi, I'm the owner, but um, sorry no refunds._

 _AsumaCoolSensei has been blocked_

Asuma frowned, even in his imagination he's getting owned.

Sakura sighed, "Well, we I guess we should just leave. It was probably the enemy that did this to us… I should have been more careful."

Naruto gave her a small smile, "Don't worry… I should also have been more alert."

He stopped smiling and touched his cheek, "Ouch… my face hurts!"

Sakura was about to chuckle, when she grabbed her stomach, "My stomach is sore… it's like if I laughed so much yesterday…"

Naruto rubbed his cheek, "Yea, same here…"

Kakashi, Gai, and Asuma both gulped.

"Let's go!" Gai said, "To Konoha! But this time, swinging on vines!"

Sakura nodded, "Sure, that might help with these sore muscles."

They grabbed their bags and headed out of the inn.

Sakura and Naruto walked next to each other as the rest walked behind them.

"Hey!" Someone called out.

Naruto turned his head to see some tall guy walk over them.

"So." The man stared, "How's your wedded life!?"

Naruto and Sakura frowned, "What?"

The man snickered, "How many kids again!?"

Sakura shook her head, "Sorry, but I'm afraid you have the wrong people."

"No, you two were yelling out how you two were married!"

Sakura's expression changed to dread, "W-What?"

Naruto didn't say anything at all. He just couldn't believe they would just yell it out.

Just then, the old lady from the day before came in, "That's right! You two were laughing like crazy! You high kids! By the way, hook me up with that, will ya?"

Sakura shook her head, "No, that's impossible. We were both asleep!"

"Yeah right!" The old lady said, "You two were yelling and laughing of how many kids you'd have together!"

Sakura's face went all red, "Oh my god…"

Asuma, Kakashi, and Gai could not move. They couldn't say anything.

"We didn't think this far!" Gai whispered to Asuma.

"Shut up, I know…!" Asuma said as he frowned.

Sakura quickly said to the old lady, "What else did we do that was super embarrassing?"

"Um, just laughing like maniacs, yelling how you two loved each other, causing a great disturbance… acting super weird… dancing terribly… scaring little-"

"Ok!" Sakura quickly interrupted her, "Look, we are both so, _so_ sorry! It must have been something we took…"

Naruto then said, "But it's all true. Well, at least for me!"

Sakura frowned, "Shut up!"

The old lady smiled, "It's alright. At least these young gentlemen took you in that inn to heal you. Buh-bye now!"

Sakura's eye twitched as she turned, "Ah… so you two knew we acted like this, but didn't tell us!? You're lucky we are at a public place or I would look bad according to society."

Kakashi nodded, "Look, we didn't want you to feel awkward… So… yea."

Sakura sighed, "I'm going to go now. Bye."

Naruto sighed. He knew Sakura probably didn't want to see or talk to him.

' _Ah… damnit…'_

* * *

Meanwhile, miles away from where the group was in a hidden… place… hideout… thing…

"Pein-sama..." Zetsu said as he approached Pein, "I have spotted the nine tailed jinjuriki not to far from here..."

"That's good. How many with him?" Pein said to Zetsu as they walked out with the others.

"Four more." Zetsu said as he stopped to look at Pein.

"Umm..." Deidara began to say as the rest of the Akatsuki looked at him, "Pein sama... Why are you all grey rainbowish? We all know how you look like, soo..."

Pein frowned, "Shut up! This is early shippuden! And don't suspect Tobi."

"Tobi?" Deidara asked as he saw Tobi accidently hit himself with a spoon he was doing tricks on, "Ouch! Tobi got hurt!"

Deidara cringed, "Wouldn't suspect him for nothing in the world…"

Just then the large doors of the hideout opened wide as they all heard Hidan yell, "We're back, bitches!"

Quietly annoyed and behind him was Kakuzu.

"I brought the money..." He said as he let Pain examine the money, even though it was Kakuzu's job.

Hidan continued to yell at the background to Kisame and Deidara, "You should have seen all the motherf'ckers I offered Jashin today!"

Pein quickly nodded at Kakuzu and said, "Alright. Do what you must."

He looked over at Deidara and called out, "Deidara... Follow me. Zetsu, we'll speak later."

Walking to his "office", Pein began, "I have a very important mission for you."

"Hmm, what is it?" Deidara asked him, not really liking the tone of Pein.

"We have captured almost all the jinjurikis... Except for the eighth one, he beat us on a rap competition and could not get his jinjuriki... Kakuzu sucks at rapping by the way..."

Deidara shifted a bit uneasy, "And the mission?"

Shaking his head, Pein went on, "Right... Sorry. You have to go undercover into Konoha... Pretend you left the Akatsuki, find all the weakness in that village."

Deidara sat down on a nearby chair and sighed, "They'll put me in question and in prison immediately… yeah."

"Not really... Sure they'll question you, but if you somehow win the hokage's apprentice's trust, then you could have a chance."

Deidara looked confused, "What? Hokage's apprentice ? Why that person?"

Pein went to shut the lights and set up an old model of a slideshow machine showing pictures of Tsunade.

"You see..." Pein said as he switched pictures, "Tsunade doesn't really have a family or really anyone she can fully trust... But her favorite apprentice, Sakura Haruno."

"Sakura?" Deidara asked as Pein was having trouble with the monitor. Soon it exploded in his face, covering his face with black smoke.

Pein coughed loudly and could say in between coughs, "Yes... She has even surpassed... Tsunade...! Tsunade trusts her a lot...! So if you could... Get her trust, Sakura will convince Tsunade to at least bot throw you in jail!"

Deidara stood up and frowned, "How am I supposed to do that, yeah?"

"That is completely up to you. We need all the information you can get and also another important thing. Find a way to lure the nine tailed jinjuriki away, I don't know, some bait... When we get the nine tails, we take over Konoha..." Pein said as he turned on the lights.

But Deidara wasn't that happy, "Why me? It'll be so boring not to explode things! I'll probably not use chakra around her! Give someone else this mission, I'm not doing it, yeah."

Pein glared at Deidara and said, "Look... Kisame... Would just stand out way too much."

Deidara lifted his hands up and shook them, having his tongues sticking out, "Seriously? Look at me!"

"He's a giant cool looking shark!"

"I have mouths in my hands!"

Sighing, Pein went on, "Tobi is... Not able to-"

Deidara crossed his arms, "I can clearly see that..."

"-Hidan is just going to kill no matter what, and that won't do any good. Kakuzu brings in the money, so he won't have time for this, Zetsu is like our little gossip girl... And he stands out a bit, too... Sasori won't be able to, 'cause you know, he's dead."

Deidara took a deep breath and let it out slowly, "Alright. Alright... And Konan? What does she do?"

"She just can't." Pein simply said.

"What? What do you mean by that?" Deidara asked.

"Enough! You will go and complete this mission! I expect you give reports to Zetsu everyday... I'll let you know what area soon."

Deidara shrugged, "Fine. But how does this Sakura chick even look like? Your little machine here didn't work."

Pein looked at him and said, "Pink hair... Punched an explosion to one of our old base."

Deidara's eyes grew wide, "That chick!?"

* * *

 **Yo, because I had to cut off last chap a bit shorter, it's kinda jacked up the chapters ahead… Like, I want to leave in a mini "cliffhanger" in most chapters (not really one lol), but yea… I really want to upload tomorrow. Also, I want to thank everyone who has been reading! I read all your reviews and I really appreciate all the kind words you all say! So, thank you sooo much!**


	16. The Homie, DeiDei

CH16: The Homie, DeiDei

* * *

It was a quiet walk back to Konoha. Sakura kept her distance from Naruto, as so did he. Not wanting to make it any more "awkward" for Sakura, Naruto didn't talk to her.

They continued to walk among the forest, making their way slowly with no rush in the world.

Kakashi looked at Gai and they both shrugged at each other. They just couldn't come up with anything at all. None of them dared to say a word as they walked.

Sakura looked up and suddenly stopped. She turned around and looked at Kakashi, Gai, and Asuma.

"Hold on." Sakura asked them, "Aren't you three supposed to be on some mission? Since Naruto and I's are cancelled for some reason, why aren't you all on yours?"

Asuma laughed nervously as he quickly lit on of his cigarettes, "Ah…! Well… Gai, explain."

Gai blinked a bit and shook his head, making his expression pumped up, "We um, just want to make sure you two arrived safely!"

Sakura crossed her arms, "I'm thankful for that, but I think your mission is more important. We don't want you all to get in trouble. People's lives could be in danger."

' _Shit!'_ All three jounin thought, _'We didn't think this far!'_

"Are you sure…?" Kakashi began, "That you don't want us to accompany you two?"

Asuma quickly thought, _'What if they get some side effects from that rip off of a potion?'_

Naruto grinned, "Don't worry, Kaka-sensei! Sakura and I will be fine! Don't you trust us?"

' _No.'_ They all thought.

Gai thought as he continued to hear Naruto speak, _'We have to agree… if we don't, they'll begin to suspect something's up. We'll just secretly follow them!'_

"Alright, we'll go now then." Gai grinned, "Take care-!"

Sakura frowned, "And please stop following us? I've sorta noticed since we left the camp. One of you three didn't fully cover your chakra that well…"

Gai and Asuma looked at Kakashi, as he shrugged, "What? The book was getting interesting."

Naruto crossed his arms and eyed them suspiciously, "What were you three doin' following us anyways?"

Asuma couldn't take this lie anymore. He was going to confess.

Suddenly Kakashi laughed nervously, "Ha ha! You caught us! We were just… wanting to check to make sure you two were ok…"

Sakura gave them a soft smile, "We aren't little kids anymore… I'm a top medical kunoichi! Naruto… is also strong. We can take care of ourselves. Also, that feeling that someone was watching you was getting really creepy."

Kakashi gave a nod, "Alright. We get it… I guess you two aren't so little… We're sorry we thought that way."

Gai and Asuma didn't say anything, they couldn't.

"Off we go, then! And we won't be following you two." Kakashi gave a grin as he pulled Asuma and Gai's hands.

Sakura and Naruto watched them leave to the other direction, the way towards their "mission".

Naruto grinned, "That's so weird of them!"

He suddenly remembered the situation he was in and quiet down.

Walking forward to Konoha, Sakura glanced at Naruto for a couple of times. She wanted to say something, but there as something stopping her.

After a while of hesitating, Sakura spoke, "Um… Naruto?"

"Yea?" He quickly answered.

Sakura stopped and looked at him, "Listen, what happened back there…? I have no idea how, but-"

He stopped her, "It's ok. We can… pretend it never happened. I can pretend you never confessed your undying love for me, too!"

Sakura blushed, "S-Shut up! Look, we were both under some weird drug thing. That doesn't change a thing, ok?"

"So does that mean you still don't trust me?" He asked her.

Sakura looked away and kept walking, "As a teammate, yes. I do trust you… but with my feelings, I don't."

Naruto continued to walk next to her, "I'm just going to say this, Sakura. If what those villagers said was true about all the crazy things we were saying, then, I admit it. I meant all those things, even if it was in some… weird way…"

Sakura didn't say anything. She didn't want to be fooled again.

* * *

"Wait, now?" Deidara asked Pein as he followed the leader out.

"Yes, now!" Pein sighed afterwards stepping in the room where the rest of the Akatsuki was.

Pein cleared his throat to get everyone's attention. Everyone quiet down, except for Hidan, who was talking on and on.

Glaring at him, Pein cleared his throat even louder, "AH-HM!"

Hidan sighed, "Yeah, yeah… I hear you." He then whispered to Kisame, "I'll tell you later."

Kisame sweat dropped, he honestly didn't care at all.

" _ANYWAYS…._!" Pein said as he glared at Hidan, "As I was saying, or was going to… There is a mini special mission for you all. Except for Zetsu and Konan… And myself… And Tobi…"

"What?!" Tobi cried out disappointed, "Tobi always goes with Deidara-senpai!"

"Not today, Tobi." Pein said as he brought out a big scroll and laid it out on a table. Everyone gathered around to see.

They all looked at Pein with confusion.

"Um…?" Hidan asked, "Is this a monopoly game?"

Pein looked down and quickly switched it to the real scroll, "Whoops… my bad. _ANYWAYS…_!"

* * *

Kakashi, Gai and Asuma all stopped once there was a great distance between Naruto and Sakura.

"Shit!" Asuma cursed as he dropped his lit cigarette by accident.

Gai sighed as he crossed his arms, "What are we going to do? We can't be so 'near' them, because then they will suspect even more… And we can't just leave them alone."

Asuma gave a nod, "Yes, you're right. Let's not forget any side effects the fake potion might bring."

Kakashi agreed, "We can't be near them because they are such… grown up people. Least we could do is secure the area…"

Gai and Asuma nodded as they listened to Kakashi's plan on making sure there was no harm towards them just in case.

It took them minutes figuring out the area before they felt something.

"You feel that, right?" Gai asked Kakashi, who gave a nod, "Yea, I do…"

Suddenly there was something huge in the sky, blocking the sun's rays.

Shielding their eyes, they soon recognized the figure.

"Well…" Asuma frowned, "If it isn't our old pal, the Akatsuki member, Deidara…"

Deidara waved at them as he made it to the floor, "Hey! I'd like some instructions to the nearest village…-"

He stopped talking as he "realized" that those were Konoha Nin, "Oh, um… hey, yea…"

Kakashi lifted his forehead protector and revealed his sharingan, "SHARINGAN!"

Asuma sighed, "Kakashi… you don't always have to yell your move… it's so ugh."

"Hey, it sounds cool." Kakashi mumbled.

Deidara immediately looked around for the girl, but she was not there…

' _Where is that Sakura girl…?'_ He thought, _'She must be with the Kyuubi! Somewhere else, I can feel it. Better get rid of these.'_

Deidara then activated another clay bird to his side, "It's been real nice, but if you're going to attack me, yeah, you're wasting your time. I'm a good guy."

But Kakashi wasn't going to let him get away one bit.

"Ground is weakness to lightning!" Kakashi yelled as he summoned his chidori

"Ummm…" Deidara sweat-dropped, "Actually, it's the other way around. Haven't you played Pokémon?"

Kakashi suddenly stopped and thought for a moment, "Ah, yes I have actually. Not to brag or anything, but my Charizard is on level 100."

Everyone stayed quiet for a moment and stared at Kakashi.

Quickly shaking his head, Kakashi frowned, "But this is NARUTO! The writer made those rules in NARUTO!"

Deidara sweat-dropped, "Shit, yeah, you're right. But wait! I'm on your side-!"

The ground started to shake as they all looked up to see a huge wave of water pass by them and someone was on top while yelling, "Hey! Surf's up, dudes!"

"What the!?" Asuma yelled in surprise.

Deidara squint his eyes as he sighed, "Kisame…? What's he doing on top of that huge wave? Since when…?"

Kisame somehow made the wave turn towards Deidara as he yelled angrily, "Deidara!"

Deidara looked at Kakashi, Asuma, and Gai as he got on his bird, "I'd suggest you all to leave now, yea, before you get hurt! I'll distract this shark boy! Just run!"

Kakashi, Gai, and Asuma just stood there confused.

"Did…?"Gai began, "Did an Akatsuki member just offer his help!?"

Asuma sat down on a nearby tree and took out a cigarette, "What the hell was that…?"

Gai lifted his fists in the air, "Let's not just stay here! We must go after them! What if they harm Sakura and Naruto!?"

All three gave a nod as they were about to leave, when two figures stopped their path.

Kakashi's heart pounded fast as his eyes grew wide. Asuma almost choked on his cigarette and Gai whispered, "More Akatsuki?"

In front of them were Hidan and Kakuzu.

"Hey!" Hidan yelled at them, but Kakuzu stopped him as he warned, "Don't Hidan… We don't have time for this."

Hidan scoffed, "Shut up, we can ask them if they've seen Deidara bitch ass. Hey!" He shouted again to them, "Have you all see this blonde idiot who's on a stupid looking bird?"

Asuma yelled out, "Yeah, we've seen him!"

Hidan grinned, "Well, shit, tell me!"

"Why are you searching for him?" Asuma said as Kakashi mumbled to Gai, "We need backup… Why are they all here? Are they crazy?"

Hidan looked at Asuma and stared at him while thinking as he walked up to Asuma.

"What?" Asuma asked as he was ready for anything. His chakra powered blades were ready for anything.

"Why does it seem like I've killed you before…?" Hidan said with a confused look, "Like in some other universe… and that some pineapple head kid with a chubby kid and a girl with early 2000s fashion taste comes to avenge you?"

Asuma stopped and thought out loud, "Shikamaru, Chouji, and Ino?"

Hidan shrugged, "Hell, like I'd know their f-ckin' names!"

Meanwhile in Konoha….

Ino suddenly stopped walking and frowned as TenTen looked at her confused, "Ino?"

She frowned as she turned to TenTen, "Why does it feel like someone said I have a bad fashion taste? Like early 2000s… I mean…?"

"Welll…." TenTen tilted her head, "You do have that shirt, or whatever… One that you'd say, 'Hey! I remember when those used to be sooo popular!" that type."

"Oh, no!" Ino yelled, "I'm going to change my whole closet! Come on!"

 _ANYWAYS…_

Kakuzu frowned, "I know that your friend just called for backup… Now, tell us where Deidara went to…!"

He stopped and stared at Asuma, "Hey… I think that your body was up for sale… They'd give me a good amount of money if I gave them to you…"

Gai stepped next to Asuma and frowned, "I won't allow you to do that!"

Kakuzu didn't move, "But I don't remember if the offer is still up. You are all being _annoying_ , tell me where Deidara is or die."

Kakashi stood there ready, "But you still haven't told us why you're chasing him! Isn't he part of the Akatsuki, too?"

"None of your business…." Kakuzu frowned, "Hurry."

Kakashi scoffed, "Ok, I bet your face is fugly under that mask. Deidara must have seen it and ran away."

Kakuzu did "the office" camera look and then back to Kakashi, "And your point is? You also hide your identity… You must be super-duper ugly…"

Hidan scoffed, "Super-duper? Um, bitch what year is it? Are you seven?"

"Shut up! It was the thing back then, you cold tea."

Hidan slapped his forehead, "This is what you get when you can't use your immortality right. You F-ck up everything!"

Gai whispered to Kakashi, "Why did you say that?"

"To get this result… Now, with my sharingan, I can see all their moves!"

Asuma took a deep breath, "They aren't doing anything…"

"Dammit, Asuma! I'm trying to look cool!"

They then heard Kakuzu yell, "Whatevs, Hidan! Let's just get rid of these, they are getting annoying!"

Hidan crossed his arms, "Do whatever you want, Kaku-BITCH!"

The Konoha trio all spread out, looking for a way of any weakness.

' _Oh no…'_ Kakashi thought, _'These two are going to kill us… and we don't know what they are capable of! I heard immortal… could they really be immortal?'_

Before anyone could react, they saw Kakuzu in the air with his Akatsuki coat off.

A huge black figure came out from his back and opened its mouth widely.

' _Shit!'_ Kakashi thought as he moved away.

"Quick!" Kakuzu yelled, "Hidan, now!"

But Hidan didn't move. He sat on a rock and began to polish his weapon while whistling to a pop song tune. It was an old Brittany Spears song.

"Ah, shut the f-ck up, Kakazu! Jashin, you're so annoying! F-ck!"

"Hidan!" Kakuzu yelled as he landed on the ground, glaring at him as Team Konoha waited patiently for them to carry on their conversation. (That's what literally happens every time there's a random "talk" scene between teammates in battle, like wtf)

Kakuzu then furiously ran up to him, "You're supposed to help me _kill_ them!"

Sighing, Hidan got up, "Listen, Kakuzu… Jashin told me today… _No_ killing… he doesn't have enough room for more blood in his inventory and wants to upgrade. Until then, I can't kill anymore."

"But you just killed someone this morning. Explain, Hidan."

But Hidan gave out a yawn, "Jashin just told me… Look, I can't change his orders! I'm a faithful disciple, ok?"

Kakuzu just stood there with a twitching eye, "I don't get pain enough for this."

' _Inventory!?'_ Kakuzu thought confused, _'What the hell is this? Some game he has in his little head? Upgrade?'_

"Fine then." Kakuzu said in a threatening voice, "I'll _kill_ you, instead."

"What?!" Hidan yelled, "Um, motherf-cker! I can't kill, it's not fair! Why can't you kill them?"

"I thought this was teamwork!"

"Eat a dick, Kakuzu!"

Gai, Kakashi, and Asuma watched in confusion.

"Um…?" Gai started, "Are we just going to watch?! Or are we going to fight!?"

Kakashi frowned, "You're right. Now's a good chance to attack. They aren't working in a team, so it'll be much easier to attack them."

Before any of them could say anything, Kakuzu spoke, "Hidan, look, we haven't been on good terms lately… In fact we never really liked working together…"

Hidan crossed his arms, "Ha, ok, what the f-ck do you want…?"

Kakuzu pulled out some coupons from his pocket, "Look, I got these to get some ice cream, 50 percent off if you buy an ice cream sundae with your favorite… sprinkles. Hidan, this is a once in a lifetime offer I'm going to give you."

Thinking, Hidan said out loud, "But wait, what about the guy who smokes? Aren't you going to kill him to sell him?"

Kakuzu looked at Asuma and then back at Hidan, "Nah, I was going to, but the offer went to something miserable… can't waste my time on that."

Asuma gasped in an offended way, "Ok, so you think I'm not _worth_ it?!"

"No. Offense." Kakuzu said as he turned to Hidan, "So are you coming? No use to staying here… you won't fight, you useless crap, and Deidara got away… So there really is no point anymore…"

Hidan gave a sigh, "Fine… I'll get the ice cream sundae with sprinkles…"

Kakashi frowned in confusion and yelled out to the leaving Akatsuki members, "So… you're not going to fight us? Nothing…?"

"No!" They both said as they began to walk off.

Gai looked at Kakashi, "Um, we should capture them now. Bring them back to Konoha."

"I…" Kakashi shook his head slowly, "I'm so confused, like…?"

Asuma sighed, "Well, there's no point really… they're gone."

* * *

Naruto and Sakura continued to walk on without saying much. But suddenly, they heard a loud crash and explosion not that far from where they were standing.

Both stopped and looked around, on full alert.

"Something's going on…" Sakura whispered, "Do you… feel that?!"

Naruto's eyes grew wide, "Y-Yeah, I feel that! It looks like it's coming this way!"

Sakura looked at him with worried eyes, "Whatever it is, we can't take on it this quick! We need to go, now!"

Without any other thought, both of them ran as fast as they could to avoid getting in some mess.

Sakura's mind was going everywhere; it felt as if she's seen that big amount of chakra before. Suddenly, her eyes grew wide as she looked at Naruto.

"Naruto! I think what's behind us is-"

Suddenly, a tall figure stopped in front of them, causing both to come to a halt.

Naruto and Sakura froze to see Kisame Hoshigaki standing in front of them grinning.

"Ah, it's just you two…" He said in a "disappointed" way.

Naruto frowned as he saw his robe, "Akatsuki! What do you want?"

Kisame scoffed, "Listen, kiddo, I don't want to fight you… even though you are a missing piece we need, I wasn't assigned to get you… yet."

Sakura clutched her fists, "Then what do you want?"

"Um…" Kisame started, "I'm searching for this traitor… Deidara, you know long blonde hair, stupid looking, annoying as hell? That ugly face."

Suddenly, above from them, they heard a loud voice, "Who are you calling ugly, shark face, yeah?"

Sakura and Naruto looked up and saw Deidara on his clay bird up in the sky.

Both of them froze. Two Akatsuki members were right in front of Naruto and Sakura. Naruto was scared, not for himself, but for Sakura's safety. He would hate himself if she got severely hurt because of him. He wanted her to be safe and the situation they were in right now didn't seem good.

Deidara got down and stood next to them, "Hey, leave these alone, aren't you searching for me, hm?"

Kisame laughed, "True, true… but, for some reason, my um, evil Akatsuki instincts tell me to take the kyuubi boy and kill the girl."

' _Evil Akatsuki instincts..? Seriously, Kisame…?'_ Deidara thought with a bit of embarrassment.

He then sighed, "Look, since I have a changed heart, I won't allow this to happen!"

Kisame chuckled, "Deidara… Our leader is very angry with you… if you talk, we are all dead. Now, I can't allow that to happen!"

Sakura glared at both of them, she had to protect Naruto at all costs, even if it meant her life. But why was Deidara helping them? She hadn't forgotten all the shit he'd put Naruto, how angry he'd made him.

Naruto also didn't forget as anger was slowly boiling up within him. He kidnapped one of his best friends and helped kill him.

"Never!" Deidara yelled all dramatically, "I will never join the Akatsuki again! Get out of my way, Shark boy…"

Kisame sighed, "I thought it was Shark Face… Make up your mind! But it doesn't matter now… I'll take you, the kyuubi, and kill this girl…!"

Naruto glared at Kisame and yelled, "No you won't!"

He suddenly made his jutsu sign and made his shadow clones.

"Wait, hm!" Deidara frowned at Naruto, "This is my fight, yeah! Just get out of here, you'll only be in the way!"

' _Please don't get out of here…'_ Deidara thought as he looked at Sakura and Naruto.

Sakura made a fist, "You're crazy if you think we're going to let you two get away!"

Kisame sighed as he got on top of a tree, "Hey!" He shouted, "I'm going to do evil things! Deidara!"

Deidara cursed under his breath, "Annoying little… ugh."

He turned to Sakura and said, "Hey, Pinkie! Check this out!"

Sakura frowned, "That's not my name!"

He ignored her and sent out a tiny little bug towards Kisame, who was just patiently waiting to get attacked.

"Oh, no…!" Kisame said in a fake worried voice, "There's this bug!"

Sakura was filled with confusion, "What's that going to do? He can't be taken down by a single bug bomb!"

He grinned, "Watch the master… Katsu!"

Naruto looked up and saw that the tiny little bug make a huge "explosion" once it got contact with Kisame, who was stupidly accepting his fate.

Deidara's "explosion" sent Kisame flying towards the sky with him yelling, "Kisame's blasting off aaggaaiinnnn~! *"

He grinned as he yelled, "Alright! Guess you could say he had a _blast_ , yeah!"

"WHAT!?" Naruto and Sakura yelled as Kisame was now nowhere to be seen.

They both started talking at the same time, demanding explanations.

Naruto yelled out, "Impossible! I know that guy is way stronger than that!"

Deidara shrugged, "Well, yes. That was my most powerful one, yet! Travel size, very convenient. Now, I must go hide, yea."

Sakura glared at him and yelled, "Don't think you're getting away!"

Deidara looked at her and said, "No, wait, wait! I've repented!"

Naruto crossed his arms, "Repented? No matter what you say, you're still not getting away!"

Sighing, Deidara held up his hands, "Look, I ran away from the Akatsuki… I don't want to do evil things anymore…!"

Both of them didn't move. They glared at Deidara, who was having trouble convincing them.

"Look." Deidara said holding his hands together in front of them, "You can use some spell tag or whatever to take away all my chakra. I want to stay anywhere. If you take me to see your leader, Hokage, whatever, I'll tell as much as you all want of the Akatsuki, yea."

Naruto and Sakura looked at him and then to each other. They weren't so certain of this.

Finally, Naruto spoke, "Alright. Don't think you'll be treated like a little princess over there…"

Sakura crossed her arms, "Why don't you go to Iwa? Isn't that where you're from?"

Deidara laughed nervously, "Um, no… that's where I'll be searched on first… Going to Konoha is the best option. Plus, you'll all get an advantage on them. What do you say?"

"You're basically telling us to take you hostage…" Sakura mumbled.

"Umm, yes? I just want to get at least a little bit of guilt off my chest… yea… I can't sleep at night from all this guilt!" He looked at them with such a sad look, "I want to pay for all of my crimes… I want to stop with all this stupid war and… stuff!"

Naruto gave a nod, "Fine. You'll get what you deserve. Sakura, give him the jutsu."

Sakura nodded as she activated a jutsu on him to not use his chakra, "That should do it…"

Deidara could feel all his energy trapped, he felt so useless and stuck with weakness.

' _Whoa… this feels so weird…!'_ Deidara thought as he slowly leaned on a nearby tree.

Sakura was about to tie him, when Naruto stopped her, "Don't… Let's just see if he really is sorry."

She didn't like that idea, but she didn't want to argue, either.

"Ok…"

They all then began to walk towards Konoha, still not letting their guard down at all.

After a while of silence, Deidara looked at Sakura. He grinned to himself as he prepared to make his way towards her, slowly gaining some strength.

"Hey! I know you, yeah!" Deidara grinned at Sakura, "You're that chick that made that explosion to one of our old hideouts!"

Sakura didn't say a word but frown at him, and then looked away, focusing on her path.

"Why are you ignoring me, yeah?" Deidara asked while walking backwards in front of her.

Naruto glared at Deidara. He couldn't believe this guy was walking right next to them. All he had for him was hatred and now, this guy is talking like nothing happened.

"Stop talking, pony tail." Naruto said as Deidara looked at him.

"Pony tail? And what about you, whiskers? Kyuubi! You're lucky I left the Akatsuki or I'd happily make an explosion out of you, Hm." Deidara smirked as Sakura glared at him.

She then said, "If you ever want to hurt him or anyone else, you'd have to go through me first. And I thought you didn't want any more bloodshed or some shit."

 _'No...'_ Naruto thought, _'I can't allow that to happen, I don't want you to die because of me...!'_

Deidara grinned, "Pinky! I was just playing around, can't take a joke?"

Sakura crossed her arms, "What type of jokes are those? Learn how to tell jokes next time, ok?"

His eyes grew wide at her and then he smirked, "You're going to be so much fun to hang out with, pinky!"

Naruto then yelled out, "Hang out? You're going to prison! And there's no way Sakura would ever hang out with you!"

 _'We'll see about that...'_ Deidara thought as he began to walk normally next to Sakura.

He then wrapped his arm around Sakura's shoulder, "Your hair smells nice! New shampoo? Yeah?"

But Sakura pushed him away, "Don't touch me so familiarly!"

"But we have so much in common, Pinkie!" Deidara said, "We both like to make things explode in some way!"

Sakura sighed, "Just Becuase I-"

"And you're a medic, too?!" Deidara interrupted her as Naruto's stare could kill Deidara.

"That's like double the prize, yeah!" He grinned.

Sakura glared at him, "I'm not a prize, you shit! You killed our friends and now you expect us to just _get along_?"

Deidara crossed his arms, "Look, I've changed! I don't want to be that person anymore, yea! I want to make new friends!"

But that didn't convince Sakura. She didn't like Deidara one bit, "Because of your stupid Akatsuki group, Gaara could have stayed dead and Granny Chio lost her life for his!"

"He's still alive?" Deidara mumbled to himself.

Naruto didn't want to say anything, even though he was filled with rage. Sakura didn't speak anything else either.

"But I I've changed, pinkie! Look, I can easily break this chakra spell you put me in, but am I doing it, no!"

He smirked, "Besides, I like you already, pinkie! Look, when I saw you explode that whole wall with a punch... You stole my heart, yea."

Naruto stopped walking and frowned, "Hey, quit joking around. Sakura has no interested in being around someone like you."

Deidara rolled his eyes, "Hm, I'm sorry she doesn't want to date you, kyuubi."

He got in between Sakura and Naruto and leaned closer to her, "Listen, those shoes you've got on, pinkie, they look so cute. Where did you get them? Forever 21 Ninjas?"

 _'This man is crazy! Going all over the place, not respecting any personal space!'_ Sakura thought as he wrapped his arm around her shoulder.

Before she could punch him, she froze.

Naruto looked at her and knew it as well.

Deidara kept talking, but secretly, he knew they were being followed by not so friendly people.

Sakura stood still as she looked around, ready to attack. Her fists were willed with chakra.

Naruto stood next to Sakura, but also made sure Deidara wouldn't do anything stupid.

Out of the sky came four figures, landing right in front of them. They looked like normal looking civilians but with weapons.

"Give us the scroll…" A tall one, 6', said while pointing it's lance at Sakura, "I can smell the scroll in your bag… give it to us, and you get to live."

Deidara crossed his arms, "Ok, that's a bit weird. You can smell that? What are you, a dog?"

' _I don't remember these in the plan… Leader-sama might have sent them? But what scroll are they speaking of?'_ Deidara thought with confusion.

"The scroll?" Sakura frowned, "No, I was ordered back to my village, not to give it to anyone."

"Ok, then…" The tall man said, "Looks like death it is… look, I'm going to give you another chance. Scroll, now!"

Deidara leaned back against the tree, "Um, let me do this, Pinkie. Come on, please?"

Sakura turned her head at Deidara and yelled, "No! You stay right there! And don't move at all. Naruto and I will take care of this real quick!"

"So is that a no?" The tall man asked, "Like are you going to…?"

Naruto made his hand sign, "Shadow clone-jutsu!"

The tall man sweat-dropped, "Ok, I think that's a no… on not giving us the scroll."

Naruto's clones went on forward to attack as Deidara climbed up the tree and watched them all start to fight.

"Pinkie!" Deidara yelled at Sakura, "Are you sure?"

Sakura frowned as she punched hard a man with an axe on his stomach, "I'm sure!"

Deidara scoffed, "Fine… just saying… hm.."

He continued to watch them fight. His eyes grew wide as they both worked together to knock out a guy in mid-air.

Naruto and his clones worked together to fight off two of the remaining three as Sakura was after the one with the sword.

Deidara looked over and saw Sakura struggling to stay away from all of his attacks.

' _She is so dead.'_ Deidara sighed as he continued to watch.

The man with a sword lunged at Sakura at full speed. She jumped backwards, trying to avoid all of his attacks.

' _Why do I always have to go for the big guys!?'_ Sakura thought as she jumped on a tree branch, hoping to get some time or area to attack.

She looked down to see Naruto looking at her as he yelled, "Sakura!"

Looking in front of her, the man swung his sword at her, causing her to lose her balance.

She landed, but did not notice he was right above her, ready to slice her in half. Just as she was about to move, Naruto stood in front of her and took the blow. He was cut across his chest pretty badly, as he landed on Sakura.

Her eyes grew wide as she looked at him all injured, "Naruto?!"

He was in so much pain, he could not speak, blood was gushing out, making Sakura's clothes all covered in blood.

Anger washed all over her as she looked up to see the three remaining men standing at a side and chuckling.

"We told you to give us the scroll…" The tall man said as he slowly walked over to Sakura, "You see? He's going to die now. Please give us the scroll so you won't die as well."

Deidara looked at Naruto from above, "Uh oh… looks like the Kyuubi here is hurt…"

' _That'll make my job easier…'_ He thought as he then yelled, "Need my help now?"

Sakura glared at Deidara and then back to the men in front of her.

"I guess that's a no…" Deidara said as he jumped down the tree to lean against it, crossing his arms.

She looked back to see Naruto still in much pain, holding tightly his chest together.

' _I have to heal him…'_ Sakura thought as the men started to circle around her, _'I have to heal him… I have to get rid of these idiots… I have to heal Naruto.'_

"Hey, boss!" The man with a sword said, "He's still moving!"

"Ah, let him be!" the tall man said, "He's going to die slowly… losing all that blood-"

Sakura used her chakra to punch his face hard, sending him flying while knocking down a couple of feet. Anger was in her eyes as she immediately went to attack the other two.

Taken back from Sakura not waiting for them to finish their mini conversation like any person would with manners, they let their guard down.

Deidara's eyes grew wide as he continued to watch Sakura fight much stronger than before, punching them as hard as possible, sending them flying… then grabbing them again and sending them flying again.

"What the?" Deidara said as he squint his eyes to see her snap one person's lance in half, "She's going maniac!"

Sakura yelled as she spun the man with the sword around fast and letting them go into the sky with a *.

"Holy shit!" The man with the ex-lance said, "She threw Carol out!"

"Well…" The man with the axe said, "I hope he can find his mother now… you know how hard he's been looking..."

"Yeah… But he won't get paid!"

"You're right, you're right-"

Sakura ran up to them and yelled, "Shut up!" She was about to grab them, but they both ran and climbed up a tree.

"We're sorry!" The man with the axe yelled in fear, "Look, we're sorry we killed your boyfriend!"

But Sakura wasn't going to take that apology. She began to kick the tree they were on, causing them to lose their balance.

Sakura grabbed the nearest fallen tree and stood there, ready for them.

All of a sudden the whole environment changed as if they were in a baseball stadium filled with fans and announcers.

"What the!?" Deidara yelled as he was in the crowd with popcorn on his hands.

"And here we have Sakura Haruno up to the plate!" A loud voice boomed over the speakers, "Will she make it to homerun?"

"You know…" A second deep voice said, "I don't think she'll make it… How much chakra does she even have?"

"Wait, Phill, looks like she took a _soldier pill_ off screen!" The first voice said.

As the man with an axe fell right towards Sakura, she swung the branch at him as if he were a baseball and sent him flying.

"And she did do it!" The first voice yelled, "Phill you owe me twenty bucks! The crowd is going wild-!"

"Wait!" The second voice said, "Looks like the other team sent out another ball!"

Just as the one before, Sakura hit him hard out flying.

"Homerun!" Both voices yelled as Sakura started to run around while waving her arms.

Deidara looked around, "Where the hell are we?!"

The second voice then settled down, "Yes… and now for the commercials."

"Naruto!" Sakura yelled as she ran up to him, everything disappearing as she ran closer to him. He wasn't moving at all.

"No, no, no!" Sakura mumbled to herself as she quickly took off his jacket carefully.

She then, started cleaning the wound so that she could begin to seal it up.

"He's losing too much blood...!" Sakura's heart raced as she saw him all unconscious from the blood loss.

"What the hell was that!?" Deidara yelled as he looked around, "Was it some genjutsu?"

He then looked over to see Sakura working hard to heal Naruto. He then looked up and noticed something.

Deidara walked over and squatted down next to her, "Um, heads up? They're coming back."

Sakura gave out a frustrated cry as she looked at the direction the enemy was coming at.

"Pinkie..." Deidara warned, "Just let me fight them! So you can save your prince charming here, yeah."

Sakura quickly shook her head, "No, you're an evil person. What if you take Naruto?"

Deidara stood up and slowly counted, "One... Two... Three..."

"What are you doing?!" Sakura cried out annoyed.

"They get here in fifteen seconds... So your choice, Pinkie. Eight... Nine..."

Sakura looked at Naruto and then back to Deidara. She had no other choice. But she knew she had to protect Naruto at all costs.

"Fine." Sakura said as she untied the jutsu.

Deidara felt his chakra flow all over his body, feeling immediate energy filling him up again.

"Whooo!" Deidara yelled out as he summoned his clay bird.

Sakura stared at him, as she held Naruto closer to herself, healing him.

Deidara looked back at the enemy and frowned, "It's time for these to be amazed by my art..."

As Deidara was fighting them off from Sakura, Sakura examined Naruto some more.

She always checked for his vital signs and it was very low.

As Sakura was checking on him for any other injuries, she noticed something big.

"His head..." She whispered as she moved her hand filled with chakra.

"Oh, god please no..." She begged as she felt his head covered in blood.

"When did this happen?" Sakura continued to heal him, hoping his brain was at least ok.

She checked his brain, but couldn't be so sure unless brought to a hospital with more equipment.

Deidara had a _blast_ dealing with the other ninjas. He threw his insect bombs on them and made it explode, causing the grounds to be painted red.

"These are so easy... How did pinkie and whiskers have trouble?" Deidara asked himself as he landed a few feet from Sakura.

' _Kisame needs to upgrade, for real? Hm…'_ Deidara thought, _'I mean… I think this was him sending these guys?'_

As he looked up to see Sakura, he stopped. He'd never seen someone so concerned, so scared, for another person's life, especially if you were trying to save them. This was way more than just medical to patient… way more.

The way she held him tightly and healing him quickly, but gently made Deidara's heart race.

 _'They... They look... So perfect.'_ Deidara thought _, 'What's this feeling!? Pinkie and Whiskers look so perfect together, I just... Want them to be together!?'_

Deidara stopped and turned around blushing a bit, _'Am I...? No… damnit, they look so cute together! How come I never noticed this before? Right when it looks so tragic?'_

He turned back and ran up to them, "Is he alright?"

Sakura held onto Naruto tightly, "No. Don't get near us!"

' _dkjfbskdjfbgskj!1!1!'_

Deidara took a step back, trying to calm down, "We need to get to your village as soon as possible. We have to save him, yeah!"

Sakura tried her best not to cry, she had held in not wanting to show any weakness to Deidara. But right now, Naruto still wasn't responding to her and his breathing was getting slower.

Without another word, Deidara summoned his clay bird, "Come on. Let's get on!"

Sakura glared at him, "What? Are you going to take us to the Akatsuki?"

 _'It'll be so much easier, to be honest..._ ' Deidara thought, _'But I seriously wanna see this.'_

"Pinkie..!" Deidara pretended to be hurt, "I just saved you and your little prince! Come on... Trust me."

After hesitating for a couple of minutes, Sakura nodded, "Alright. Let's go."

* * *

 **Yo, I suck at writing action fight scenes things… lol, anyways…. It took longer than expected to edit this chap, like, I didn't want to be that bad? But, oh well… thanks for all the support! Luv u gaizzzzz (ok, I promise never to speak like that again lol) Oh, and one more thing, are the people who comment on the sports things or whatever during the games… what are they called? Announcers? Lol, I dunno I just said voices, I don't watch that much sports. (So sorry if that confused you)**


	17. Liar Liar

CH 17: Liar Liar

* * *

Sakura sat down, holding Naruto in her arms as she was continuing to heal him. They were still on Deidara's clay bird, flying around for a long time.

' _Where the hell is this village?'_ Deidara thought as he looked around, _'We've been flying for hours and Pinkie here hasn't told me anything… Hm hm, at least she's taking care of him.'_

He looked at Sakura and saw how tired she was. It was starting to get very dark out as Naruto was starting to stir.

Sakura gasped and whispered, "Naruto?"

Deidara looked back, "I think we should land. Get some rest for whiskers here, yeah."

Sakura nodded, "Somewhere near fresh water would be perfect."

Deidara gave a nod as he began to look around from above.

' _I can't see a thing!'_ He thought as he squinted with one eye. _'Right. I got this in my other eye… nice…. Kinda…'_

Naruto groaned in pain, but didn't open his eyes. Sakura checked his wounds again, making sure everything was ok. She checked his head on the large bump, but felt that everything was alright now. She wasn't 100 percent sure, but everything seemed fine so far.

Sakura sighed as Naruto slowly went to sleep again, not saying much.

' _His brain seems fine… as long as I know… so, there can't be any damage in it. Thank goodness…'_ Sakura thought as she took in a small yawn. Her chakra was beyond done, she had pushed her limit with healing Naruto.

Deidara looked at her, "Hey, I found some place… Make sure your little prince doesn't fall off, ok?"

Sakura glared at him as she felt the large bird starting to land.

' _Very funny, you little shit.'_ Sakura gave a "hmph" as she looked at Naruto.

As they landed, Deidara yelled out, "LAND HO!"

Sakura frowned and loudly whispered, "Hey! Shut up! Can't you see he's sleeping!? And we aren't even out at sea!"

Deidara looked at her and shrugged, "Hey, I've always wanted to say this. I never had any real friends, so-"

"Am I supposed to feel sorry for you?" Sakura asked annoyed, "Because I'm not."

' _Stubborn little-!'_ Deidara tried not to show any annoyance, "Alright, alright…"

They landed near a stream, with lots of trees surrounding the area.

Sakura looked around confused, "How far are we from Konoha?"

Deidara shrugged, "I honestly… _don't know._ "

She did not move a muscle. A vein popped out from her forehead as she slowly trembled, "Y-You mean to tell me… you were flying around _**blindly**_?!" Sakura tried not to yell to not wake up Naruto, but she was beyond pissed.

Deidara leaned back on a tree and crossed his arms, "Does it look like I _know_ where Konoha is? Hmm, I was an Akatsuki, not some traveler."

"This is my entire fault!" Sakura sighed as she walked around with her hands up her hair, "I should have at least shown you! Wait! Don't you know how to get there!? Don't the Akatsuki know that at least?!"

"Look, I never really paid attention when Pein was teaching… he's so boring, yeah…" He said while lowering his head a bit, "But tomorrow you can lead."

Sakura sighed as she looked back at Naruto who was still on the clay bird. She had no more energy to do anything. Her whole body ached and she knew that she had to rest soon. But she still did not trust this Deidara at all. Unless Naruto woke up soon and he would somehow stay watch, she would have to stay watch.

Looking at her bag, she started to take out a tent. She started to spread it out and work her way through.

"Do you need help?" Deidara asked as he walked next to her.

"No thanks…" Sakura mumbled, "Wait… go set up the fire."

"Alright." Deidara went on to gather some supplies to make the fire.

As Sakura finished the tent she slowly walked over to Naruto, who was still asleep. Pushing to her limit, she picked him up in her arms and slowly walked over to the tent.

' _Why are you so heavy, Naruto!'_ Sakura screamed in her head, _'Better tell him to cut off on that ramen!'_

Finally placing him inside the tent, she immediately went to make sure his injuries were alright. Once she was certain he was going to be ok, she checked his head with her chakra.

"Everything seems fine…" Sakura smiled, "It was just a small bump…"

She then went to her bag and pulled out some sheets and covered him up, making sure he was going to be warm for the night.

Giving out a yawn, Sakura stepped out of the tent to see the fire going.

"Is he going to live?" Deidara asked not looking at her.

Sakura didn't say anything and grabbed her canteen and walked over to the stream to fill it up.

"Hello!" Deidara shouted, "Pinkie! Is your prince charming going to be OK!?"

She turned her head, frowning at him as she whispered loudly, "What did I tell you?! Shut up! He's sleeping!"

Sitting down near the fire, but opposite from Deidara, she blinked her eyes, trying to make sure not to fall asleep.

"Well, is he?" Deidara asked, getting bothered from not getting his question answered.

"Why would you care?" Sakura said in a tired annoyed voice, "Yes, he's going to be ok…"

Deidara crossed his arms, "Hmm… good, because then I'd have to deal with your crying and crying like you girls do… yeah."

Sakura didn't say anything. She was tired, but even if she wanted to sleep, she couldn't, her body wasn't "sleepy", it was just extremely tired.

"So... Have you two..?" Deidara asked suddenly as Sakura stared at the fire.

"Have what?" She asked him as she then drank some water from her canteen.

"Gone out?" He asked, getting ready to receive the news.

' _I bet they have! I bet! And if not… I'll make sure they do.'_ Deidara thought, waiting for her answer.

Sakura glared at him, "And why do you care?"

"It's just that... You two seem so, attached, like not normal for just _teammates_. You're so overly concerned for him! It's so cute."

Before Sakura could say anything, there was a noise coming from the tent.

Quickly getting up, Sakura ran over, "Naruto?"

Deidara looked at her and smirked, "Ya see?"

Naruto slowly crawled out of the tent and frowned, "What happened..?"

"Don't move!" Sakura cried as she gently pushed him back in.

Naruto tried to struggle, but Sakura kept a firm grip, "I said, not to move, Baka! Your wounds could open up again... I didn't have enough chakra to fully heal them."

But all Naruto could do was stare at her.

"What's wrong?" Sakura asked him, "Are you thirsty?"

"Where are we?" Naruto asked her.

Sakura sighed, "I don't know... But Deidara-"

"Deidara!?" Naruto cried out in surprise, "What's he doing here!? Are you also part of the Akatsuki?!"

Sakura's eyes grew wide and she nervously chuckled, "Me? Naruto, I could never-"

"Then why are you with him? He's your partner, isn't he? You two have come to take the kyuubi from me!" he frowned at her.

Deidara popped his head inside the tent, "Oh my god, does he have amnesia!?"

Sakura frowned and yelled at him, "No! He does not! His head is fine! You don't get amnesia from a bump on the head like that! I checked on him, he's ok!"

Sakura glared at Naruto, "Naruto... It's me, Sakura!"

"Sakura?" He questioned, "I-I don't know you."

That statement made Sakura freeze, "Naruto, stop playing! This isn't funny anymore! Quit playing, I know you don't have amnesia. Please, snap out of it, you might be confused, but I highly doubt that you have amnesia."

Naruto frowned at her, "Listen, I just don't, ok? Just take me back to Konoha already! Or do I have to fight you?"

Sakura crossed her arms, "I'm a doctor, Naruto. Stop playing around, please. Let's focus on this."

"You have amnesia, kid!" Deidara yelled as he grinned.

Naruto scoffed, "Amnesia? You're crazy, I remember everything! I don't remember pinkie here, though!"

"Hey!" Deidara frowned, "I call her that! Pick another nickname for her."

Sakura tried not to cry in frustration. There was nothing she could do unless if he cooperated.

"Alright, alright!" Sakura frowned as she glared at Naruto, "Let's pretend that you _do_ have amnesia… Naruto... Don't you remember me at all? I'm your teammate! We both were born in Konoha... And our other teammate is Sai! You remember him, right?"

Naruto nodded, "Yea I know who he is... If you're my teammate, why is he here?"

Deidara looked up and frowned, "I'm turning myself in, yea... I've repented from my actions... But please, pretend I'm not here."

He squealed inside, on this sudden thing happening to them.

Crossing her arms, Sakura looked at Naruto, "You and I both found him. He saved us from the Akatsuki, sort of. So, we're bringing him back to Konoha with us."

Naruto didn't say a word. He just stared back at Deidara, then at Sakura.

Sakura sighed, "So, you can't remember anything of me... Nothing at all?"

"That's what I've been trying to tell you..." Naruto said softly, "I'm sorry."

Deidara poked his head in the tent again, "Hey! Um, why don't you, you know, start telling him of your memories with him!"

Sakura frowned and pushed him out, "Get out! Then, we need privacy!"

' _So, I can check him again, and I swear…'_ Sakura thought annoyed, _'If Naruto is lying to me… I will be so mad!'_

Deidara smirked as he mumbled to himself, "There is no privacy if I'm two inches away from a thin tent! Oh, and I'm a ninja btw."

Sakura poked her head out of the tent and frowned, "I heard that. And it doesn't matter if you listen... Just, do your own thing, ok?"

Deidara didn't respond, leaving Sakura to turn back to Naruto, who was confused.

"You know what, Naruto?" Sakura began, "You're probably confused. I'm going to check on your head right now, to make sure. I'm so confused, you seem fine!"

Naruto didn't say a word as Sakura got behind him and checked his head with her chakra. But unknown to Sakura, Naruto gave a smirk.

After a couple of minutes, Sakura shook her head, "You still seem fine… It must be some rare condition if what you say is true… But we'll have to wait until we go in Konoha. But in the meantime, get some rest. You might get your _memories_ back in the morning." Sakura still wasn't convinced.

As she was about to leave, Naruto grabbed her hand, "No, wait! I um, I want to know who you are."

Slowly, Sakura sat next to Naruto, "Look, I'll tell you some other time of my great life. Right now, I have to make sure this Akatsuki won't do anything stupid."

But Naruto didn't let go of her, "Ah, come on, I know you don't wanna leave me."

Sakura looked at him suspiciously, "Well, yea, just in case you feel bad."

"Nah, I'm not going to leave you alone with him outside." Naruto said, "Besides, I acted stupid. I wanna apologize for randomly accusing you. I'm sorry."

"I have to be outside. I can't stay… And it's alright I guess. You're just tired. I'm going to leave you now, so make sure to sleep well and be alert in case some enemies come in. You know, ninja stuff."

Naruto shook his head, "No, don't leave until you believe I've lost my memories! Of you! Why can't you believe your own patient's despair?!"

"Alright, alright." Sakura said looking at him, "I'll play along... Only because I'm not 100% sure."

Naruto leaned forward and whispered to her ear, "I'm telling the truth... I'd remember someone as cute as you."

' _Is…'_ Sakura thought, _'Is he flirting with me?! At a time like this?'_

Sakura blushed as she turned her head away, "Ok, seriously. Please get some rest, please."

But Naruto shook his head, "How am I supposed to sleep wen I have such a flawless person right next to me?"

Sakura gave a nervous chuckle, "Then, I'll just go..."

"Hey, how many times do I have to tell you? Stay, c'mon!" Naruto insisted.

Sakura slowly started to scoot away, "I _really_ think I should be leaving. I've got other things to do."

All of a sudden, Deidara yelled, "Hey, Pinkie! I'm um, going for a midnight swim! I'll totally not be eavesdropping at _all_ , yeah."

Sakura frowned and mumbled, "That idiot..."

Naruto looked at her at then at the direction of Deidara's voice.

"What's up with you and him? Are you sure you aren't part of the Akatsuki, too? He's calling this nickname as if he knows you well. Don't tell me you two are…" He frowned.

Sakura's eyes grew wide as she and Deidara both yelled, "No! Hell no!"

Just then Deidara ran in with some small "diary" in his hand, "Look, Whiskers, I even have proof! See?"

In the dirty looking diary was a terribly written title saying, "PINKIE'S DIARY! DO NOT TOUCH!"

Sakura frowned, "My name is not pinkie! And where did you get that?"

Deidara ignored Sakura and opened up to a page, "Look!" He said out loud, beginning to read mimicking Sakura's voice, "Day 343435, I'm in love with nine tails! And not the Pokémon, but the real thing! OMGGZZ, I'm soo gonna ask him to prom this weekend! Every day I dream-"

He was suddenly kicked out of the tent, sending him flying by Sakura.

Yelling, Sakura told Deidara, "Stop listening to us!"

She walked outside and then turned to face Naruto, "Look, just rest, ok? And stop thinking something's going between me and this freak!"

Before Naruto could speak anything, Sakura ran off to finish off Deidara.

He sighed as he laid back down with his arms behind his head.

' _Is this a good idea…?'_ Naruto thought as he slowly closed his eyes.

* * *

Sakura walked up to Deidara and crossed her arms, "Just what do you think you're doing? Stop acting like a child and sit still!"

Deidara sighed as he leaned on a tree, "Alright, alright, I'm sorry. Why don't you, um, stay in that tent and watch over your little prince?"

She growled as she sat in front of the fire, "Shut up. He needs some rest right now, not your nonsense. Besides… I have to stay up and make sure you don't do anything stupid."

Deidara scoffed, "If I wanted to escape or do any harm, I'd do it. But oh, look! Here I am, hm."

Not saying anything, Sakura eyed him carefully and then towards the fire. After a while, she looked at him, "Don't think that just because you're being so ' _nice_ ', that you're going to easily win our trust."

He looked at her, not saying a word.

"You have killed innocent people and even hurt our loved ones. Just being near you can be repulsive. Even if what you claim is true… I can't easily forgive you."

Sakura took in a gulp and looked at the sky, "Because of you Akatsuki, many have died…"

Deidara lifted his hands in defense, "Look, I understand… I can't believe I realized it so late… I feel like shit, ok?"

' _Now…'_ Deidara thought as he prepared himself, _'Let's see how my acting class paid off… of course, Kisame isn't the best teacher…'_

Deidara took a deep breath, "I… I just want to be different, every single second I live in regret!" He came closer to Sakura and placed his hand on his chest, "I feel pain in my chest for all the wrong I've done! If I'm not forgiven, I'll go insane! I know what I did was wrong, but, how can I fix it?"

Sakura glared at him, "By going to rot in jail…."

He chuckled, "Do you really think that's what's going to fix all the trouble I've caused? I don't care what anyone says… I just want your forgiveness!"

This caused Sakura to look him confused, "Me?! It's Naruto and all those families you should ask for forgiveness!"

' _I did_ _ **not**_ _want to do this….'_ Deidara thought as he turned his head and blinked at bit. Turning around to see her, a single tear went down his cheek as he kneeled in front of her, "Please! If I want to be forgiven, I have to start with somebody! Can you forgive me?"

Sakura saw his face filled with hurt and pain. She was slowly getting convinced that maybe he was feeling guilty and wanted to repent or something.

But she stood up and crossed her arms, "Look, if you want to get someone's forgiveness, then, go to Naruto! If he can forgive you… I guess I can."

Deidara tried not to scream in annoyance as he thought, _'Pein-sama did NOT choose the right person! This little girl is driving me insane!'_

He stood up and sniffed, "Alright… I guess I should wake him up right now…'

Walking towards Naruto's way, Sakura ran in front of him, "Wait! Not now!"

Deidara frowned, "But if I don't get anyone's forgiveness, I won't be able to sleep! If I can't have you forgive me, then I have to ask Whiskers here, yeah."

Sakura looked back towards Naruto, then at Deidara, "Fine."

She pushed him back and said, "I… If what you say is true… I guess that I can forgive what you did. I mean, I have to learn to forgive, right?"

' _Just please don't wake up Naruto! He's gonna be acting all weird again!'_ Sakura thought as she gave him a fake smile, _'Heeehhhhh of course I don't forgive you! Just saying this so you don't wake him up!'_

Deidara grinned as he thought, _'Finally! Damn, she's so ugh! Now, to keep up the act…'_

He sniffed as he reached out to give Sakura a big hug, "Thank you!"

Sakura screamed as he wrapped his arms around her, "Let me go!"

Hearing all the commotion, Naruto's eyes opened wide as he sat up, slightly confused.

"Let go, damnit!" He heard Sakura's voice and immediately ran out, flinching a bit from his injuries.

He looked up and saw Sakura struggling in Deidara's arms, anger filled up inside him as he pushed him away, "Let go of her!"

Deidara grinned as he looked at Naruto, "Whoops, sorry, I'm just so happy right now!"

Sakura coughed a bit as she glared at Deidara, "You stupid little-"

"Pinkie here forgave me!" Deidara said as he wrapped his arm around Naruto's neck.

"What?" Naruto asked as he tried to push him away, "What do you mean forgive?"

Sakura kicked Deidara's leg and turned to Naruto, "Nothing! Just please, go to sleep." She glared at Deidara, "I can easily un-forgive you!"

"No, please, I won't sleep!" Deidara cried as he placed his hands together.

Naruto frowned, "Forgive what? What's he talkin' about?"

Sakura placed her hand on his shoulder, "I'll tell you tomorrow… just, go back-"

"She forgave me for being an Akatsuki member. I feel so much better, I swear I'll be able to sleep well for the first time in months!" Deidara said, hoping Naruto would act all weirdly happy.

Naruto froze as he looked at Sakura, "You… you did what?"

' _Oh, I see!'_ Naruto thought, _'So, Sakura can forgive this criminal for killing people, for literally killing Gaara, but not forgive_ _ **ME**_ _for a misunderstanding!?'_

So, Naruto pretended to laugh it off, "Ah, well, since I totally don't remember you, I wouldn't know how that feels for you- I mean us… I mean…" He was still a bit mad and confused about her sudden attitude to forgive Deidara instead of him.

' _This guy is planning something…'_ Naruto glared at Deidara, _'I swear, he's like wanting to take Sakura's attention. What if he's trying to win her? Or something! What if Sakura falls for him! She did suddenly forgive him…'_

Jealousy grew over Naruto as he watched Deidara give Sakura a big noogie.

"Ouch!" Sakura yelled as she elbowed him hard on his side, "What the hell was that! Stop being so happy!"

She looked at Naruto and sighed, "Please go and rest, come on, I'll help you."

Deidara secretly squealed as he saw Sakura grab Naruto's hand. But Naruto turned his head and glared at him, Sakura not noticing.

The rest of the night, Naruto could not sleep at all. He sat inside, watching the night go by. He could tell she was very tired and needed to sleep. Every time she would come and check on him, he would pretend to be asleep so she wouldn't worry that much.

As dawn was near and Sakura made her way to check on Naruto, he sat up, surprising her a bit.

"Naruto…" She mumbled, "Are you ok? Do you need anything?"

Naruto grinned, "Yeah, I'm fine. Why don't you go and sleep? You seem very tired…"

Sakura shook her head, "No, you need the rest… I'll stay up and watch. It's only a few more hours until we can move."

But that didn't stop him, "Hey, I don't know if you know this, but the kyuubi inside me helps me heal way faster than normal. I'm feeling way better now, so why don't you sleep? Even for a bit?"

He heard Sakura give a small chuckle, "Right… I forgot about that. Still don't _remember_ me?"

He shrugged a bit, "Um, yeah! No idea of who you are…!"

Once again, Sakura checked his wounds and nodded, "Ok, I see you have healed up pretty quickly… They could still open up, though. Are you sure?"

He gave her a soft smile, "Yeah, I'm sure. Come on, you need the sleep."

She did not hesitate as she flopped down and closed her eyes, "Make sure that Akatsuki doesn't do anything too stupid?"

"Yeah, I will." He said as he placed his blanket on her. Giving her one last look, he left.

Once outside, he went to the stream and washed his face. Looking to his side, he saw Deidara sleeping against a tree all peacefully as if nothing were wrong.

Naruto gave a small sigh as he sat down and watched the sky.

As the hours passed by, Sakura soon woke up to find Deidara asleep and Naruto sitting in front of the stream.

"Are you feeling any better?" Sakura asked him.

"Huh?" Naruto looked up to see her, "Yeah, I'm feeling good."

She gave him a small smile, "That's good… I'm going to pack up, don't do anything stupid, please?"

"Don't worry, I won't. Need any help?" he asked her, but she shook her head, "No, just stay, please."

Sakura went to go pack as Deidara stirred around finally opening his eyes.

Naruto stood up and walked over to him, "You're up."

Deidara yawned a bit, "Yeah… What's for breakfast?" He stood up and tried to clean the dirt off of his pants

"Are you trying to steal Sakura away from me?" Naruto frowned as he crossed his arms, "She would never forgive you! She'd forgive you if I did… and I haven't."

Deidara smirked at him, "Oh, I thought you lost _all_ memory of her… or am I wrong?"

Naruto blushed as he tried to make up something, but Deidara beat him to it, "Look, I won't tell, ok? I know how she can be… and…"

He played with his fingers, "And maybe I can help you be with her? Look, I know how much you like her, C'mon, let me help you."

Naruto looked at him suspiciously, "You promise you won't tell?"

Getting a bit impatient, Deidara quickly said, "Yeah, yeah, I won't. But what about my other offer? Hmm? Will you accept my help? Look, I got you covered, yeah."

Naruto hesitated and then looked at Sakura, who was checking on her medical kit. Giving a sigh, Naruto said, "Alright… I'll let you help. I've tried to be all different towards her, but she doesn't seem to react… she seems more far away."

Deidara chuckled as he wrapped his arm around Naruto, "I see your problem, Whiskers… Listen, all you gotta do is follow my lead."

Naruto sighed as he slumped a bit, "Alright. What do I have to do?"

"Watch this." Deidara grinned as he walked up to Sakura.

"Yo, Pinkie!" Deidara said as he walked up to her.

Putting her hands on her hips, Sakura asked, "What?"

"Do you believe in love at first sight?" Deidara tried to be all casual and smooth as he leaned against a tree, "Or do I have to walk in front of you again?"

Not waiting for her reaction, Deidara looked at Naruto and gave him a thumbs up before Sakura punched him really hard, sending him flying.

"Who does he think he is!" Sakura yelled as she stomped to continue to pack.

Miraculously, Deidara came back alive with a few casts and broken arms, leaning on a single crutch.

"You see?" Deidara gave a smile filled with broken teeth, "That's friendship level. She'll show much more love with you, trust."

Naruto hesitated a bit.

 _'If that's friendship, what's the real thing!? Wait.'_

"Here." Deidara said as he handed Naruto a small book, "This my man, will help you win Pinkie's heart, trust, yeah. Go on, open it."

Naruto took it and looked at the cover. It said: _**Deidara-senpai's book on how to get the girlzz**_

' _What the f-ck is this.'_ Naruto feared as he opened the book to the first page. He looked up at Deidara and gave doubting frown, "You sure this is going to work?"

Deidara chuckled, "Whiskers, I used to get all of the ladies! I used this, and it has always worked."

Naruto sighed, "Fine, I guess I trust you on this… But don't think I forgot on what you did to Gaara! I'm going to make sure you rot in jail."

Acting all offended, Deidara covered his own face, "I can't believe this… after all I've done so that you can be with my OTP- I mean, so that you can be happy!"

Naruto didn't move, "Look, I just don't think I can forgive you that easily."

Deidara turned around and gave an annoyed look, _'Yea, I don't want your "forgiveness", I want the pink haired one's…'_

"Fine." Deidara said, "I'll still help you, but right now, I need to help Pinkie."

He walked over to see Sakura already done with the packing.

"Need any help?" Deidara asked as he turned his head to see Naruto flipping through the pages.

"No, just don't do anything stupid… Wait." Sakura said as she looked at him, "Here. Take all this stuff."

She handed Deidara a huge bag.

"What's in this?!" Deidara yelled.

"That's the camping supplies! And other utensils."

"Like your medical kit?"

Sakura frowned, "No, that I keep on me. If you somehow run away, you'll only take stuff that isn't that important."

Deidara looked offended, "Seriously, yeah? I could have run away a long time ago, Pinkie…"

As they continued to talk, Naruto continued to see the pages and saw one thing in big bold letters: _**Call them "babe", they love that. It's like, they had some trauma with their real name that "babe" makes them feel good. So do that. Yeah.**_

"Really?" Naruto asked himself, "But all guys get beaten up when that happens."

' _Should I seriously trust this guy…?'_ Naruto thought as he turned around to see him trying to balance the large bag on his back.

"Alright." He told himself, "I guess this shouldn't hurt… I hope it doesn't hurt!"

As they were finally ready to leave, they began walking following Sakura, since she could sort of recognize the place.

"Are you sure you know this place, pinkie?" Deidara asked as he secretly tried to push Naruto closer to her.

Sakura sighed, "Yes, for the millionth time, I do."

He then mumbled under his breath, "I declare you husband and wife."

"What?" Sakura asked him, "Did you say something?"

Deidara nervously laughed, "No! What? Me?"

Naruto wasn't paying attention as he continued to look at the pages of Deidara's book.

"Naruto, what are you reading?" She asked.

Quickly putting the book away, he stuttered, "N-Nothing! Babe!"

She frowned, "Babe? The hell are you reading?"

Ignoring him, she continued to walk forward, nearing to some small village.

Sakura looked up and recognized the village. A smile appeared on her face as she looked at the two blonds, "I remember here! Looks like we are close to Konoha after all!"

Naruto stretched his arms out as he scooted closer to Sakura. Slowly, he placed one arm around her shoulder as she noticed him.

Giving a sigh, Sakura didn't say anything as Deidara squealed in the back while some people quickly walked away from him.

' _SHE DIDN'T SCOOT AWAY! SKJkjsbdfslkdbjflsk!'_ Deidara's mind was going wild as he got out an old camera from his pocket and started to take pictures.

' _This is going in my scrapbook.'_ He thought as he continued to take more pictures.

Sakura turned around and stopped while frowning at him. At the same time, she let go of Naruto, "What do you think you're doing, Deidara?!"

Chuckling nervously, Deidara said, "Hmm, I was just- I'm a tourist! I just wanted to take pictures of this… beautiful place."

The place looked like a dump.

Sakura eyed his suspiciously, "Put that away. We don't want to bring any attention to us."

But it was too late. They were now known as the weird colored haired people with ug names in the whole village they were in.

Naruto growled in frustration as he couldn't hold Sakura any more. Suddenly, his stomach started to rumble a bit as Sakura looked at him.

"You're hungry?" Sakura asked him, "We could stop and eat…"

Deidara's eyes lit up as he walked in between them, "Yeah, why not that restaurant?"

It was a restaurant that said: Couples eat free! Except for you, Gerald. We know what you did, you cheater!

Sakura frowned as she slowly pushed him away, "Yeah, not gonna happen."

Naruto quickly opened his book and flipped through the pages to find the exact situation there.

 _ **If a girl says "yeah, not gonna happen." Then, oh well, not gonna happen.**_

He sighed as he closed the book and said out loud, "Alright, then why not over there? Babe, what do you think?"

Naruto pointed to a simple restaurant with bright neon colors.

Sakura's eyes lit up as she tried hard not to get mad, "Oo… Neon colors… that looks, pretty? And it's a family restaurant, how sweet! Perfect to disguise our identities."

' _He's calling me babe, isn't he? Where does he get this crap!'_ Sakura thought angrily as she tried not to show it.

Deidara immediately said, "Yeah! You and whiskers here are my parents and I'm the lil kid!"

Sakura crossed her arms, "No, I was thinking we would be all siblings. And you're too big to be our kid!"

Still not convinced, Deidara sighed, "Alright, who's gonna believe that we're siblings? Sure they'll believe Whiskers and I are, but you? You've got pink hair. They'll think: Ummm did the parents f-ck up?"

Sakura was angry as she was about to yell at him, when Naruto cut in, "Hey! Hey! Sakura, I mean, this _babe_ can be the cousin!"

Sakura pushed Deidara away and pointed at Naruto, "Call me babe one more time, see what happens."

Deidara slapped Naruto's shoulder, "Hey, I wanna see what happens, yeah."

Naruto shook his head, "Alright! Let's just eat! I'm starving!"

Just then, a random dad came out of nowhere and laughed, "Hey starving! I'm dad!"

* * *

After the awkward situation with the random dad, they entered the restaurant, being thankful no questions were asked.

They all sat a four seat table with Deidara being across the two.

Sakura looked at her menu and wondered what she would order.

Naruto was looking at his book to see a page saying: **Best lines to tell girlzz so that they can fall 4 u!1!**

"Hmm…" He said as he read some.

Deidara sighed as he looked at the menu, "I have no idea what these are…"

Sakura looked up and sweat-dropped, "Umm… you have the menu upside down."

Naruto looked up and laughed, "Ha-HA!"

Growling, Deidara kicked him under the table earning a small cry from Naruto.

They both glared at each other, making Sakura sigh, "Alright, shut up! You're causing us to outstand!"

Naruto tried to calm down and "smoothly" leaned back as he looked at her and said, "Hey, babe, wanna know what's on the menu? Me -n- you."

Sakura stared into space and gave a huge sigh, "Oh my god..."

Deidara snickered, "My man, that was great!"

' _Sike!'_

Naruto gave a grin and then turned to see Sakura leave the table.

"Apparently it wasn't!" Naruto frowned as he followed her.

"Keep it up, though!" Deidara said as he yelled to Naruto, "You're doing ok!"

Naruto followed Sakura, "Hey, wait! Look, I'm-"

"Why are you following me?" Sakura asked as she placed her hands on her hips, "I have to use the bathroom… and don't ever use that pick up line. It's terrible."

She stepped inside the bathroom and then immediately went out to tell him, "And me and you are NOT on the menu! Ya nasty cannibal. But I know what you meant."

Slowly walking back to the table, Naruto shook his head as he looked at Deidara, "You sure this is going to work? So far it's going wrong… Look, I don't want to sound like some… wierdo."

Deidara looked at him and leaned on his chair, "Too late on that, yeah. But trust, you must not be doing it right! You gotta try harder! Keep using those lines, they love it. She loved it so much, she had to take a break!"

"You sure?" He asked as he sat down.

"Whiskers, trust me! I'm trying to be a different man, and helping you will help me!"

"Alright, alright…" Naruto sighed as he looked at the book some more.

"And one more thing…" Deidara leaned forward, "Stop being so nice! Girls like bad boys! Name the most popular guy in your village… come on, let me hear it."

Naruto hesitated a bit, "Yeah… there is… or are."

Deidara's eyes grew wide, "Twins?! Oh, no that's worse than I thought… How are they?"

Naruto looked down and shrugged, "They aren't twins… they're siblings. It's the Uchiha brothers."

"Uchiha…" Deidara frowned, "Why do I suddenly feel so jealous of them… Like… they're the ones with the eyes, right?"

"Yeah, that's them!" Naruto sighed, "All the girls especially love Sasuke! I mean, he's a pretty cool guy, but still…"

Deidara chuckled, "Let me guess, he's some sort of bad boy, right? I knew it! You see, this whole time, Pinkie here has been looking for a bad boy!"

Naruto scoffed, "Seriously? Do you think she'll forgive me if I do that…?"

"Forgive you? Nah, what?" Deidara began as he thought, _'Ooo this is getting juicy!'_

"Never mind." Naruto leaned back a bit, with his hands behind his head.

But Deidara wanted to know this, first of all because he was a nosy bastard, second of all because it could be useful to him somehow.

"Wait." Deidara started, "Forgive you in what?"

Just then, Sakura walked in curious, "Forgive Naruto in what?"

Naruto's eyes grew wide as he avoided eye contact, "U-Um, nothing! Why do you have to be so nosy?"

Sakura scoffed, "What's your problem? I'm your teammate, and don't forget what he is!"

Deidara cleared his throat, "Um, remember? I repented?"

' _Oh right…'_ Sakura sighed, _'I_ _ **forgave**_ _him…'_

She gave him a fake smile, "Right, I'm sorry; I was just wanting Naruto here to understand…"

Quickly, Naruto slipped through his pages to see if he could find anything to say, but Sakura looked at him, "Hey! What the hell is that? You've had your nose stuck in that thing for quite a while… Let me see that."

Hiding it, Naruto turned his shoulder, "Quit being like that! Can't I have any privacy?"

Sakura eyed him suspiciously, "Hey, you alright? I didn't check you when we got here-"

"I'm alright, Babeee." He smirked at her making her frown. She placed her hands on her hips, "Stop calling me that! You're acting so-"

"Hello! May I take your order?" A waiter said as he smiled at the group.

' _Oooo'_ Sakura thought as she glared at Naruto, _'He's lucky the waiter came or I'd beat him!'_

Quickly turning her head, Sakura smiled, "Hello, yes, I'd like…"

As Sakura was ordering her food, Deidara gave Naruto a nod of "approval" as Naruto gave a shrug.

' _This plan will so work…'_ Deidara gave a smirk to himself, _'At least, that's what happens in the stories and shows I've seen.'_

* * *

 **Yoo, ok. Sorry for super late update… It's just that… I was editing the WRONG chapter… I procrastinated, so I forgot where it was last time, so I was editing ch 18 instead… Once I was almost done, I was like, "wait a minute… ahhh shit, no wonder it felt too fast". Yeah, I got so mad and lazy, I gave up. But yeah, I came back. So, expect next chapter like in two days since its almost done editing and I'm super busy! Thanks so much to all the supporters! XX**


	18. All Over Again

CH18: All Over Again

* * *

"What!?" Tsunade yelled from the top of her lungs, "What do you mean you _lost_ them!?"

Standing in front of her was no other than Kakashi, Gai, and Asuma with their heads down full of shame.

Kakashi looked at Asuma and frowned, _'This is the last time I trust Asuma in this'_

He shook his head as he began, "You see, we searched everywhere for them…"

Tsunade crossed her arms and glared at them, "I trusted all three of you! And with the Akatsuki doing some weird shit according to you all! I mean, seriously? Ice cream coupons!?"

Gai moved his hands around, "It's the truth! But that's not the case, we did not find any sign of their chakra as we searched for them! So, we either assumed the Akatsuki had taken them, or come here. Either ways, we would have needed backup."

Sighing, Tsunade gave a nod, "You're right… we have to send out a search party. You three will go as well. You are all dismissed until I call for you all."

After leaving the office, both Gai and Kakashi hit Asuma in the back of his head.

"Ouch!" Asuma frowned, "The hell was that for?!"

Kakashi crossed his arms, "Because we trusted you! You said you felt their chakra here! Both Gai and I thought otherwise. But _nooo_ , we just had to follow you!"

Asuma pushed past them, "Alright, enough… Look, I'm sorry, ok? I honestly did think… Anyways, we really need to gather more supplies. She's probable already sending a message to some Anbu out there."

Gai gave a 'humph' and then a small smile, "Let's just hope they are doing ok."

Kakashi looked out the window to see the sun shining bright, "Yeah… hopefully they will make it back soon and that they are safe."

* * *

"Are you an angle? Because you... Fell from the sky?"

Naruto gave Sakura a nervous smile as she looked at him confused and annoyed face, "...What?" She asked shaking her head a little.

All three had been walking back, getting closer to Konoha. It was only a couple of hours away, but they decided to walk for now.

"Wait." Naruto stopped, "Wouldn't that make you Lucifer?"

Sakura frowned, anger building up, "Are you calling me the devil!?"

"What?" Naruto's eyes grew wide, "No, babe! I was just thinking-!"

"My name is Sakura, Naruto! Don't you _babe_ me!" She crossed her arms, "You're lucky your memory of me is gone, because you'd know I'd kick you right now."

Deidara came in between them, "Hey, hey! Calm down! Pinkie, sweetie, please. Let him do his thing! Don't you see he's trying to get you to like him?"

Sakura sighed as she turned around, "Let's just go."

Just then, some passing villager who looked buff walked past them, minding his own business and even whistling a tune.

Just then Deidara whispered to Naruto, "Pick a fight with this guy!"

"Why?" Naruto whispered back.

"Cause! Girls love fights and when you win, she'll be all like _oh mi god, ur sooo hot!_ And stuff! C'mon, they love bad boys who are over protective! They'll think that they only care about their girlfriends."

Gulping, Naruto walked forward to the buff man and yelled, "Hey!"

Turning around, the man looked at him oddly, "Huh? Do you need something, sir?"

Sakura looked at Naruto and frowned. Just as she was about to stop him, Naruto yelled, "Did you just whistle at my girl!?"

The man gulped and looked at Sakura, "N-No! I was just whistling a tune!"

Naruto pushed the poor buff man, "Yeah, right, whistling a tune to lure her to you!"

"No, I swear!" The man said as he slowly backed away, "Fine! I admit! It was the pretty princess theme song!"

Naruto frowned, "Pretty princess?! The only one who sings that is me to her! She's my princess! Now, get outta here before I whoop yer ass!"

Sakura gasped and angrily frowned at him, "Naruto!"

The man nodded and quickly made a run for it.

Before Sakura could say an apology, she saw that the man was gone.

' _Damn he's fast!'_ She thought.

Turning to see him, Sakura crossed her arms, "Why did you say that? He didn't do anything! What's wrong with you? Did you forget that you were kind before?"

Shaking her head, she turned around and continued to walk, ignoring Deidara's annoyed look.

Naruto immediately got out his small book and looked around for anything that might have been wrong. Just then Deidara snatched it from him, "Give it to me!"

"Hey!" Naruto frowned, "Give it back!"

Deidara sighed as he threw the book in the woods, "You don't need this… you're ruining everything!"

Naruto sighed, "Then what should I do? Huh?"

Smirking, Deidara wrapped his arm around Naruto's shoulder, "Easy! Just sing her a song! Chicks love that."

"Really?" Naruto said with a little bit of hope.

"Sure! You know, I used to sing to a whole bunch of chicks… and they were literally chicks… chirp chirp."

Naruto pushed him away, "Then why the f-ck am I listening to you!?"

Deidara chuckled, "That was a joke! Now, go and say a poem to her, right out of your heart! Now!"

"But didn't you say-" He suddenly was pushed by Deidara towards Sakura's direction, "Hurry!"

Sakura was way far up, not wanting to waste any more minutes away from home. She looked back only to see Naruto being pushed towards her.

Sakura fell back on the floor and glared up to see Naruto chuckling nervously, "Whoops!"

Getting up, she dusted herself off, "I guess it was an accident… Let's just hurry! Are you feeling better? Because that random incident must have been because of your injury… somehow."

Just as she was about to check on him, Naruto looked behind her to see Deidara giving him a thumbs up.

"Um…" Naruto stepped back, "Of course! I feel so much better!"

Sakura placed her hands on her hips, "Are you going to continue to say those lame pickup lines? You've been saying that this whole time-!"

"Sakura!" Naruto began as he was reading the signs behind her that Deidara had randomly pulled out.

"Yes?" She asked.

"You are… like… a…" He squinted his eyes a bit having trouble reading Deidara's hand writing.

"Like what?" She asked again a bit confused.

"Like a soaring eagle…! That… flew right into… my heart and… stde it! Stde? What's…? Oh, I mean, stole it!"

Sakura looked at him oddly, "Congratulations?"

She continued to walk forward as Naruto continued to walk next to her trying to read the signs.

"Wait!" Naruto said loudly, "Roses are… bloody and violets are boring… What?"

Deidara frowned as he looked at his own sigh and gasped, "Shit, this is a poster of my favorite band! That's their motto… weird."

Just then, they heard some voices. Sakura stopped and looked around, "Do you hear that?"

Naruto nodded, "Yeah, I hear it."

" _Rock… paper… scissors shoot"_

Deidara sighed as he pointed up, "I think that's the noise."

The three looked up to see two Anbu messing around at the top of the trees casually.

Sakura squinted her eyes and frowned, "Konoha Anbu? Wow, great job in being quiet!"

Naruto crossed his arms, "Y'know, I used to think they were the coolest… But they are so weak!"

That sentence made both Anbu look down and in less than a second had Naruto against a tree with a kunai on his throat.

Sakura gasped as she ran up to them, "Stop! We are from Konoha!"

The one with the dog mask nodded, "Oh, we know! We just heard him talking shit!"

Deidara looked at them confused and annoyed, "Shouldn't your priorities be something else? Like, I dunno, like there's an Akatsuki, well ex, right next to them!?"

Sakura snatched the Kunai away from them and placed it in her bag.

' _You know how much a kunai is!?'_ Sakura thought, _'Shit, I'm taking this!'_

Both Anbu stopped and pointed at Deidara, "What's an Akatsuki doing here?"

"Ex!" Deidara yelled as Sakura stepped forward to check on Naruto.

Naruto frowned, "We are taking him back to Konoha!"

The one with the cat mask scoffed, "Ok, right, then why isn't he on any sort of imprisonment? Imprisoned? Tied? Shit, I don't know!"

Sakura looked at them, "He claims that he had repented in what he's done. So far he has helped us get back home and is willing to give special Akatsuki information. He's no threat… yet."

' _The hell does she mean by yet?!'_ Deidara thought, _'I thought she trusted me! Damn it!'_

"Cool, cool." The one with the dog mask said as he wrote down some things in a notepad.

Sakura continued to speak, "Will you take him personally?"

The one with the cat mask scoffed, "We can't. We were ordered to stay here on watch if any Akatsuki showed up."

Naruto crossed his harms, "There's one right in front of you."

"Fine!" The one with the cat mask said, "We can't leave, just in case, you know, more come, so we will use a scroll to teleport you there."

Sakura's eyes grew wide, "Really? Oh, thank you!"

' _I CAN FINALLY SHOWER.'_ Sakura thought happily.

' _DEATH IS NEAR!'_ Naruto thought nervously, _'They'll find out I don't have amnesia and Sakura will surely kill me!'_

' _Wait, so she doesn't trust me yet? I'm f-cked.'_ Deidara thought while trying to keep a calm look.

Both Anbu then did some hand signs with their blood on the scroll. Standing back, the three saw a huge pile of smoke pop out of nowhere.

Coughing, they looked up and were confused and surprised.

"Goku!?" Naruto yelled, "What the!?"

Sakura pushed past Naruto and yelled at the Anbu, "You guys can summon Son Goku?! What the hell?!"

"Umm, yeah?" The one with the cat mask said, "He gets our food if we are in a hurry."

Deidara looked with wide eyes as Goku waited patiently, _'I've read his mangas!'_

"So…!" Goku smiled, "What do you need? I'm in the middle of a battle and all my friends are dying."

"Teleport these guys back to Konoha." Both Anbu said at the same time.

Giving a salute, Goku grabbed all three and disappeared.

In less than a second, they were in the front gates of Konoha.

"Ummm…" Sakura began awkwardly, "Thanks?"

"Bye!" Goku said as he smiled and disappeared.

"What the f-ck was that?!" Naruto and Deidara yelled in shock.

 _Meanwhile in the Dragon Ball Z world…_

"Where the hell is he?!" Vegeta yelled in frustration.

"Oh, teleportation job that Goku got." Krillin said, "He needed some money for Chi-Chi."

 _Anyways…_

"At least we are back home." Sakura smiled in relief.

Naruto and Deidara tried to tip toe away from her as she grabbed both of their ears, "Oh no you both don't! Naruto! We need to check your head with Tsunade! Deidara… we need to turn you over."

But Naruto began to panic a bit, "H-Hey! I'm doing ok! I don't need to remember you! I can already tell you are a great person!"

"Yeah!" Deidara said as he tried to pull away, "I have to tell you something important! Please!"

Sakura let go of Naruto and glared at Deidara, "What is it?"

"I just want to tell you that… you are a great friend. Actually, you are the only friend I ever had, so thank you. Before I am arrested, I just wanted to tell you that. You, too whiskers."

"Oh…" Sakura said as she let go of him, "Yeah…"

Deidara shed a tear as he smiled, "Please visit me when I'm locked away! I know I did bad, but please visit me. I don't really deserve to be alone the rest of my life."

Sakura sniffed, "Ok… I guess you aren't so bad."

Naruto gave a nod, "I will."

They walked in the village straight towards the Hokage's office. Everyone ignored Deidara since he looked like a normal civilian and apparently, the ninja world doesn't have a news cast to show to the whole world who the Akatsuki was. They need to upgrade, quick.

Suddenly two Anbu came in front of them three.

"Akatsuki." Both said at the same time, "Follow us."

Meanwhile with Tsunade, she saw Shizune run up in gasping for air.

"God damn it, Shizune!" Tsunade frowned, "What is it?!"

"I-Its Sakura!" She said.

Tsunade's eyes grew wide as she suddenly stood up, "Is she hurt!?"

Shaking her head, Shizune continued, "No, Naruto is with her as well. They both made it back safely."

Tsunade closed her eyes as s soft sigh escaped her lips, "Ah, thank goodness…"

"But an Akatsuki, Deidara, is with them!"

" _What_?" Tsunade then ran out of her office outside to meet them. In front of her was Naruto, Sakura, the two Anbu and Deidara.

Anger was in her eyes, "Deidara…"

"Um… yes?" Deidara asked with confusion, "How are you…?"

"Bring in Ibiki!" Tsunade frowned at the Anbu as more Anbu came in to make sure Deidara wouldn't try anything tricky.

"You know where to bring him." Tsunade said as they pushed Deidara forward.

"Hey!" Sakura said, "Don't be that rough… he's here to make peace! To help us out!"

Tsunade looked at her in confusion, "Sakura, don't interfere… Both of you, in my office."

They quietly followed Tsunade into her office and past by Gaara and his siblings.

"Naruto…" Gaara said, "I'm glad you are safe. We were all going to search for you two."

Naruto gave him a small smile, "Thanks... we're doing ok."

' _Looks like he still hasn't found out of Deidara.'_ Naruto thought as he was excused himself and continued to follow Tsunade.

As they entered the office, Tsunade looked at them with relief, "I'm so glad you two are ok… if anything had happened to you two… I'd feel so guilty."

Sakura shook her head, "No, you should never feel like that!"

Naruto smiled, "You should know us better! With both of us in a team, we are unstoppable!"

Sitting down, Tsunade gave a sigh, "I'm just happy you two made it safe… and with an Akatsuki back."

Immediately saying, Sakura spoke, "About him… please, he's different. I know I sound stupid, but please… if he wanted to, he'd kill us on the spot."

Naruto nodded, "Yeah, although was he did was bad, he's changed. He must have been forced to do that, since he has no family… But he's willing to tell us everything he knows of the Akatsuki."

"Yeah!" Sakura said, "Even some Akatsuki were after him. He protected us from getting hurt."

She looked at Naruto and frowned, "Speaking of getting hurt… Naruto here has amnesia."

Naruto's eyes grew wide as he gulped.

"What?!" Tsunade stood up, "Amnesia! How! He seems to remember everything perfectly."

Sakura shook her head, "No, he remembers everything alright… everything and everyone but me."

Tsunade went to check his head, "How did this happen?"

"He got badly injured in a fight for those coming after the scroll you gave us." Sakura pulled out the old scroll and gave it to her.

Tsunade took the scroll and frowned, _'What the hell? This scroll was filled with corny jokes for my friend… who would want this?"_

"Don't worry about it…" She said slowly, "I'll figure it out later… this wasn't supposed to happen. And for you, Naruto… I can't seem to find any damage in your brain."

Sakura frowned at him, "So was he lying!?"

"W-What?" Naruto stuttered out, "I for real don't remember you! I'd remember someone as beautiful as you, I swear! Look at me! I'm blushing from your beauty!"

She crossed her arms at him, "Again with being such a flirt!"

"U-Um!" Naruto began as he slowly walked away, "Did you sit on a pile of sugar? 'Cause you got a pretty sweet ass!"

Sakura blushed as she lifted a fist, "Oh, that is it!" Tsunade grabbed her, "Hold on, Sakura! Naruto, stop that!"

"Wait!" Naruto said as he reached for the door handle, "Wanna know what my jacket is made of? Boyfriend material!"

"All this time, he's been a terrible flirt! Stupid cheesy pick up lines!" Sakura frowned, "It's like he's a total different person!"

Tsunade let go of Sakura and grabbed Naruto's arm, "Alright, now. Naruto, there's something totally strange with you. Yeah, you been a terrible flirt, but this is beyond terrible! I really have to check on you with our machines with your brain just in case."

She looked at Sakura and sighed, "Please don't hurt him… he's probably in some weird state… this could be some new disease!"

Nodding, Sakura said, "Yes. You're right… Let's go, Naruto."

' _What if it really is some disease?'_ Sakura thought as she looked at Naruto as they walked towards the hospital.

' _What if he has the superlame-flirt disease? He'll say lame pick-up lines until his death! Oh, that's a very terrible way to die…'_

As they made it to the hospital, Sakura greeted everyone and told them about Naruto having to get a checkup with his brain and to get everything ready.

"I'll bring him to his room." Sakura said as she led Naruto.

"Wait here, Naruto." Sakura said as she closed the door, "I'll be right back. I'm going to get some materials to make sure you can really be safe to use the machine."

Naruto couldn't take this anymore. He couldn't lie to her anymore; things would get worse and probably some chaos.

"Sakura, wait." He said as he reached out to her.

She turned around and placed her hands on her hips, "About time you called me by my real name."

He leaned forward, cupping her cheek and kissed her lips slowly. Taken back a bit, she had her eyes opened, but then she slowly closed her eyes, wanting to kiss back, but she couldn't.

Quickly pulling away, Sakura said, "Look... You're not the real Naruto I know... I can't do this."

"Sakura, wait-" He began to explain, but was cut off by her.

"The real Naruto sure would say his cheesy flirting things, but this one just over does it… but that's not the point. The real Naruto would be kind to everyone, not some jerk like you were back then with that poor man! Or you calling me babe every three seconds when you know I have a real name."

"I'm sorry… I just thought you would like me more if I were different…" He slowly said.

Sakura shook her head, "So, you do admit you were lying… again."

"Wait, I did this because I knew just randomly changing character would be weird, so I made up the amnesia thing so that it wouldn't be that weird." He said, "I even got advice from Deidara!"

"What?!" Sakura frowned, "From him? Damn it no wonder… But seriously?" She stepped away from him, "You didn't have to do that… how am I supposed to trust you again if you keep lying to me!"

He didn't say anything as she kept going, "Do you know how I felt when you said that… you couldn't remember me? The moment you told me that… if felt as if a huge chunk of me was taken away, as if everything I remembered with you was just my imagination. I felt crushed… that's why I insisted you were fine… I didn't want to believe."

"Sakura, I'm-"

"And when I saw you unconscious… covered in blood… I was terrified."

He sighed as he ran fingers through his hair, "I just keep messing things up, don't I?"

"No shit…" She said as she opened the door, "But…." She turned her head and gave a small chuckle, "You were such a dork doing all that…"

He gave a small smile, "I guess I was…"

"Don't do that again. Just… keep being yourself, please… I like that Naruto much more than the other one."

She stepped out the room to go and tell the others to cancel everything and to find Tsunade.

"Sakura, wait!" Naruto said as he ran up to her.

"Yeah?" She said as she looked at him.

"Could I possibly make it up to you… by taking you out to eat something?" He said nervously.

Smiling a bit, she said, "As long as you pay."

* * *

Kakashi and the others were summoned to Tsunade's office. They were ready to go and find Sakura and Naruto, but were glad that they were back safely.

"So, they are fine?" Gai asked with excitement.

"Yes, and also Naruto here was a little liar!" Tsunade frowned, "What made him lie like that! This was serious, lying about having amnesia or some disease!"

Leaning forward, she said, "Also… they were attacked by some group of shinobi… they wanted the scroll, but you all know that the scroll was fake… so, my question is, why were they attacked?"

Asuma gulped a bit as he nervously chuckled, "Um… well…."

Frowning, Tsunade looked at him, "Is there something you have to say? Naruto's life was on the line on the sudden surprise!"

Shaking his head, Asuma immediately said, "Wait! I was thinking of something else, I swear!"

"You weren't listening to me!?" Tsunade roared out in anger.

"Yes! I mean no! I was just remembering I didn't give tip to the waiter at a restaurant we were at."

Tsunade sighed, "Asuma… don't you have a girlfriend to be with…? Look, they are safe here and even brought an Akatsuki, Deidara."

Kakashi's eyes grew wide, "So it was true… he must have bumped into them because the others were chasing him."

Tsunade frowned to herself as she thought for a second, "So… it must be true what Sakura and Naruto said."

"About what?" Asuma asked.

"That Deidara wants to help us… they said that he is regretted by everything he has done. He'll give us all the information that he knows by will…"

Just then there was a knock at the door and soon Ibiki entering.

"We have gotten all the information from the Akatsuki." He said as he handed Tsunade a scroll with all the information.

"It was so easy." He continued, "He simply told us everything, he was pretty cool with it. We didn't have to do anything to him."

"Really?" Tsunade said as she read everything, "Interesting… so he must be really changed."

"Yeah, we even played UNO with him. He won… ugh." Ibiki mumbled.

"What?"

"I-I mean, he's a good person. Will that be all?" He asked.

Tsunade nodded, "Yes… keep him in the cell, we will all see what his consequence will be of later."

Kakashi looked at Tsunade and frowned, "We have to be extra careful… if the Akatsuki find out he is here, they could all come and take down Konoha…"

She agreed, "You're right. This should be a secret, which, I'm afraid is too late. We have to put in extra security just in case. Be on your feet, as well."

As Tsunade dismissed them, another group came in.

"Ah, Anko, Shino and Sai… good to have you three back." Tsunade smiled, "So, did you find anything?"

Anko gave a nod, "Yeah, we found out where their base was and gave a message, but it looks like it never made it… Not wanting to risk it, we decided to come back. But I guess it was too late when we decided because they were gone the next second."

After what Anko had said where the location was, Tsunade's eyes grew wide.

' _It's just as what Deidara had written down… he did say they could leave because they knew he would say the location and he was right.'_

* * *

A frustrated noise escaped Ino's mouth as she was scribbling down on paper. Every few seconds she would get the paper and turn it into a ball, throwing it into the full trash can of her house.

"Think, think!" Ino said loudly annoyed, "Some other way…. How can I make those two like each other again?!"

Looking out the window, she saw the town being decorated nicely for an upcoming carnival they would have.

"If they aren't here by tomorrow, then, I'm gonna miss my big plan!" Ino frowned, "I just hope they are doing ok…"

It was getting late outside as she heard a knock on her door. Getting up, she opened the door to see Sakura here, smiling.

"Hey, what's up, Ino! Just came back from the mission I had…"

Pulling her inside, Ino hugged her best friend tightly, "Ohh! You're back! Where's Naruto!?"

Gasping for air, Sakura could barely say, "Outside! Gah!"

Letting go, Ino smiled, "Ohhh, I see. Why didn't he come in?"

"He had to do something… We are going to get something to eat, wanna come?"

Ino's eys grew wide, "Wait… alone? Are you two finally back together?!"

Sakura blushed a bit and shook her head, "No, just as friends… So, want to come?"

Frowning, Ino shook her head, "Nope, I'm too busy here… making a plan… But go and have fun!"

Nodding, Sakura said, "You sure?"

"Yeah! Just go, I already ate, by the way." Ino then pushed her friend out the door, "Well, talk to you later!"

Shutting the door, Sakura was standing outside as she mumbled to herself, "But I wanted to tell you… Ah, never mind. I'll tell her later."

She smiled to herself as she looked at Naruto walking up to her.

' _Maybe, I'll give him the chance… start slowly all over again.'_

"Ready to go?" Naruto grinned at her.

"Yeah, I'm ready."

* * *

 **So, they "forgave" Dei that easily?! Lmao, in the real Naruto, he forgave Obito… he killed his parents! I was like, damn son ok. Wait, it's been almost a year since the shit ending… damn… I wanted a team 7 movie! I wanted to see him become hokage! The ceremony! Team 7 working together like old times, like a whole mission movie… And for Naruto to have a better hair cut! Lookin' ugly af -cries-, but we got shit instead…. Anyways, I was also editing the next chapter, too, so expect it on Monday or Tuesday. Thanks so much for all the support! XX**


	19. Game

CH19: Game

* * *

As the morning began to show, Ino was waiting for Tsunade outside of the office. A couple of minutes later, Lee came in all pupmed up along with Gai.

"Gooooood morning, Ino!" Both said enthusiastically.

Yawning a bit, Ino lazily said, "Good morning... How do you two have the energy this early?"

Both jogging in the same spot, the looked at her and gave a grin.

"You're young!" Gai said as he continued to jog in place, "You must have the energy to do anything no matter the time or day!"

Lee nodded in agreement as Ino stretched her arms, "Sorry, I was up all night-"

"So was I!" Lee quickly said, "I was doing pushups all night long!"

Frowning a bit, Ino contained, "Right... as I was saying, I was up all night-"

"And jump around until I see the sun!" Lee said as he began to do some jumping jacks.

Sighing, Ino shook her head, "Never mind..."

"That's the spirit!" Gai yelled happily as he joined in with Lee.

The Hokage's door suddenly opened to find a very annoyed Tsunade, "What's all this noise?!" She angrily whispered.

Gai looked at her and grinned, "Ah-ha! We are just doing our normal routine, want to join? Ino?"

Tsunade crossed her arms, "Alright, come in my office... there's a special mission for you three..."

Walking in, Ino, Gai, and Lee were a bit curious to what it was.

"It's very simple..." Tsunade said, "I need you three to go and check out this possible location of the Akatsuki."

Gai looked surpsied, "But how did you all find the location?"

Looking around and finally facing them, Tsunade said in a low voice, "Let's just say that our little captive is being cooperative and has given us some more information... So be very cautious, it might be some trap."

She handed them a scroll with all the information in it, "There." She said, "Once you have memorized the map, dispose of it just in case."

All three nodded as Tsunade continued to explain the mission, telling them that tomorrow morning would begin.

 _'Tomorrow?'_ Ino thought, _'Oh, no... what about my plan?'_

* * *

As the day went by, Sakura woke up late near noon. She stretched her arms as she got up towards the restroom.

In the bathroom, she heard some muffled voices. Tensing up a bit, she looked around and sighed.

 _'Ugh, it's those neighbors again...'_ Sakura thought as she washed her hands with soap.

" _I wanted the couch pink! And some spaghetti! Damn it! That's it, divorce!"_

" _We aren't even married! I'm just your carpet cleaner man!"_

Sakura sighed as she walked out to see if she could get something to eat 'cause she was hungrehhh

As she was looking around, she gave groaned in annoyance, "Ah... I forgot that I ran out of food! All this is probably spoiled..."

She began to clean her fridge for any spoiled food and then started to write down what she needed from the market.

"Ok, done." She mumbled as she went to change into something more comfortable. She was going to see if Ino wanted to have brunch with her.

"I hope she isn't working..." She told herself as she put on some shoes. Just as she was going to open the door to leave, there was a knock.

Opening it, she gasped and then grinned, "Sai! Oh, it's so good to see you!"

Sai stood there grinning back, "Yeah, it's good to see you too, Ugly!"

A frown was placed on her face as she backed away and slammed the door in his face.

Sai looked confused, "Hey!"

Opening the door, Sakura placed her hands on her hips, "Even after all this time, you still call me ugly! Oo, you're lucky I'm in a hurry!"

"Where are you going?" Sai asked, "I was going to ask if you and Naruto could train with me. Also, to spend some time with you all... I'm still trying to improve my peoples skills."

Sakura looked a bit in thought, "Well, I'm not so sure... I've got to go and get some food, since I'm out. But, maybe. How about brunch? Wanna get something with me?"

Sai gave a nod, "Alright, so what about Naruto? Wait... I guess you're still crying like a... how do they say it? Like a little bitch?"

Sakura frowned as she pushed past him, "No, I'm not crying like a little bitch over him!"

"But, you're still mad...? Like a bitch?"

She turned around and scoffed, "Where the hell did they take you?"

"Well... having Anko on the team does take some affect on me..."

"No wonder..." Sakura crossed her arms, "Let's just go."

"But what about Naruto?" Sai asked as they began to walk forward.

"We'll find him on the way, don't worry." She said as they went to search for Naruto.

* * *

Naruto was walking outside of the hospital because he had to checked up by the doctors. His injuries were finally fully healed and he felt great.

He stretched his arms behind his head, "Ah, feels good to be back home!"

Walking towards the center of Konoha, he spotted Gaara outside of a shop, waiting patiently... for something?

Curiosity taking over, Naruto ran up to him, "Hey! Gaara! What are you doing here?"

Looking up, Gaara gave him a small smile, "Ah... hello. I'm just waiting for Temari and Kankuro to leave this souvenir shop."

"What? Souvenir?" Naruto asked, "This isn't a souvenir shop! This is a restaurant!"

His eyes grew wide as he looked inside through the glass and saw his siblings eating happily some pizza with some chicken wings and drinks.

"Those cheap bastards..." Gaara frowned, "They told me they wanted a souvenir before we left..."

Naruto frowned at them, "What? Nah, come on, me and you can go and get something to eat, forget them!"

Nodding, Gaara walked next to Naruto as they began to leave.

"Why didn't they let you in? You're the Kazekage!" Naruto said waving his hands around.

Crossing his arms, Gaara frowned, "I think they're mad because I won a bet with them..."

"What bet?"

He blushed and looked away, "I don't want to talk about it..."

Curiosity hitting him again, Naruto stood in front of Gaara, forcing him to stop, "Come on, tell me!"

"You must promise to never say it ever again!" Gaara said in a bit of desperate.

"Ok, I won't." He said as he showed Gaara his ear.

Gulping, Gaara mumbled, "I... well... Temari was singing in a very high pitched voice... and Kankuro dared me to sing in a higher pitch and they'd give me all their money savings... If I'd loose, they'd get my money savings..."

"What?" Naruto asked with confusion, "Why do you need money? You've got all the money you need!"

Crossing his arms, Gaara looked away, "Look, there's this new thing they came up with... it's called a Lamborghini... It looks like fun and I needed the money!"

"And then?"

Hesitating a bit, Gaara went on, "I... I sang higher note than Temari... caused the glass to break in the Hokage's meeting room... and made some passing old man to possibly loose his hearing..."

Naruto looked at him wide eyed, "What the-"

Quickly shaking his head, Naruto grabbed Gaara's shoulders, "But did you get the money!?"

Frowning, Gaara moved forward, "They only had 7.50 each! In total? 15... that was their money savings... 15... Now I'm never going to get the Lamborghini."

Shrugging, Naruto looked at him, "I have no idea what a Lamborghini is, but I'm sorry to hear that!"

Before Gaara could speak, they heard someone calling Naruto's name.

"Naruto!"

Turning their heads, they saw Sakura and Sai walking up to them.

Naruto's eyes grew wide as he ran up to Sai, "Sai! Hey, it's been a long time! So, how was the mission?"

Smiling, Sai spoke, "Hey, Dickless! I see you haven't changed!"

Anger was shown on Naruto's face, "Ok, so after so long, you still call me that?!"

Sakura crossed her arms, "Sai!" Turning her head, she smiled at Gaara, "Good morning, Gaara, I hope your stay here at Konoha is going great?"

Gaara gave her a nod, "Yes... it's been well. Today we all leave, though."

"Oh... where's Temari and Kanuro?" Sakura asked, but Naruto shook his head singling her to stop as he did a neck slice signal.

Looking at him, she gave a nod as she slowly went to look at Gaara, "I-I mean-"

"They're getting something to eat." Gaara said, "But Naruto invited me to eat something with him."

Grinning, Naruto walked in between them both, "Yeah, lets all go and eat something!"

Sai looked up, "That's what Ugly and I were about to do. Let's all go...!"

The four of them nodded and went to go find someplace to eat. Of course, no one had any other choice since all Naruto wanted was some ramen...

* * *

Ino sighed worriedly as she walked down the busy streets of Konoha.

 _'I have a mission tomorrow! There's going to be a small carnival, too!'_ She thought how she would make the plan work, _'_ _If TenTen and the others go get Sakura an Naruto, those two will suspect something... I need someone new...'_

And with luck in her hands she spotted Hinata walking by Kiba.

Ino's eyes grew wide and a mischievous grin appeared on her face.

Quickly running up to them, she waved, "Hey!"

Kiba and Hinata looked up and smiled.

"Hello, Ino." Hinata smiled at her.

Kiba gave a nod, "Hey! It's been a while, Ino!"

Ino then looked around for Sakura or Naruto, just in case. Then she grabbed both of their arms, "Come with me!"

After getting to a safe spot, Ino gave a begging look, "Please, please help me!"

Hinata and Kiba blinked confusingly.

"What's wrong?" Hinata asked concerned.

"I have a mission tomorrow!" Ino began to explain, "Tomorrow with Lee and Gai-sensei for about a week. I need someone to help me to keep up with my plan."

Kiba asked suspiciously, "What plan? If it involves being kicked out of our homes, then forget it!"

"No!" Ino yelled, "That's not it! It's a plan to get Naruto and Sakura together!"

Kiba and Hinatas eyes grew wide, then nodded understanding.

Hinata smiled, "What can we do?"

Ino grinned, "Since I know you two are going out-"

But Hinata interrupted her nervously, "I-Is it that obvious?"

 _'Wait, she already knows... but what if Neji finds out?'_ Hintata thought as she looked around worriedly.

Shrugging, Ino said, "I mean, yea sort of. You and Kiba always hang out together, sometimes with Shino, but yea... Close enough to a couple."

Kiba grinned, "Damn right we're going out! Been having a blast since!"

Hinata blushed at him happily, "Kiba!"

Before they could get all cuddly, Ino said quickly to get back into the main idea, "So, I need you guys to sorta have... Game night with them. Or something like that. Only you four, so they won't suspect."

"So maybe take them to the carnival?" Kiba asked.

Ino nodded, "Yea, but first at home games... Then go, so they won't think it's some setup."

Hinata smiled, "It'll be like a double date! I'll call Sakura over at my house."

Kiba turned to Hinaa, "And I'll call Naruto to meet us at your place."

Ino grinned mischievously, "Yes, that's right! Perfect. I leave everything to you two. And remember, don't tell them the plan!"

Kiba and Hinata nodded and then watched Ino walk away, while waving to them.

"We should call them today." Hinata looked up at her boyfriend.

Kiba grinned slyly, "Sure.. But first, let's go out somewhere together. I wanna show you this awesome place Akamaru and I found while looking for Kurenai-sensei!"

Hinata nodded, "Ok! And then we can go find Sakura and Naruto!"

Kiba blew a whistle with his fingers and Akamaru came running.

"C'mon, boy! Let's show Hinata the place we found!"

Akamaru wagged his tail happily and walked beside the couple.

But little did they know, was that they were being watched.

"Damnit, Neji!" TenTen sighed, "Hinata will be alright!"

"Shhh!" Neji signaled TenTen to get lower and hide in the bushes with him.

She sighed as she did so and whispered, "Kiba a great guy. He wont hurt your cousin."

Neji randomly pulled out some binoculars and whispered back, "Just in case..."

"Why are you taking out binoculars!? Don't you have the byakugan?"

Nervously laughing, Neji slowly put them away and shouted, "Byakugan!"

TenTen rolled her eyes and placed the binoculars in her eyes, "Why am I dating you again...?"

"Because you love me." Neji simply said as he started to move forward, signaling TenTen to follow.

He stopped and frowned, "I can't believe this! I do everything right and this happens!"

"Oh, no!" TenTen pointed out, "Neji, look! They're making out!"

His eyes quickly shot up, "Where?!"

Laughing, TenTen shook her head, "You are so gullible!"

* * *

The group of four had finished eating and were walking and talking at the same time. Sakura walked next to Naruto and gave him a playful bump as he was talking.

He smiled at her as he glanced at her and continued to talk to Gaara.

"So, you're leaving today?" He asked as he pushed Sakura back playfully.

"Yeah... this evening." Gaara said as Sai nodded.

"Ah, well you will miss the small carnival!" Sai said, "I hear that's where people gather... and do some fun colorful stuff at night!"

Gaara shrugged, "Well, our home can't be unprotected a lot. Maybe some other time."

Sakura laughed at bit as she dodged Naruto in the background. She stuck her tongue at him as looked at her with a playful frown.

Sai looked at them and smiled, "Looks like-"

They were all interrupted by Temari and Kankuro who stood right in front of them.

"Gaara!" Temari said out loud, "Where have you been? We have to pack right now to leave this evening."

Gaara crossed his arms, "Did you get your souvenir?"

Kankuro frowned, "Yeah, and it was tasty! All my money savings... gone!"

"Really?!" Gaara almost yelled out, "Seven fifty was all your money!?"

"Hey...!" Kankuro pointed, "That was some good 7.50! One of those bills was made when the first Kazekage was alive!"

Turning around, Gaara spoke to the remaining three, "Well... I guess this is goodbye."

Naruto looked up and smiled, "Yeah... Until next time, Gaara!"

Sakura and Sai said their goodbyes to them.

As the three siblings left, they heard Gaara tell Temari and Kanuro, "You two are not going to ride my Lamborghini..."

"The f-ck is that?!" Kankuro yelled annoyed, "I want my 7.50 back!"

Sakura turned around and shrugged, "Well... I have to go now, I have some food shopping to do."

Sai nodded, "Ok. Later then!"

With that Sakura waved at them and left as she yelled, "See you all later!"

Naruto stretched his arms and looked at Sai, "Hey, want to train with me? I got beaten up pretty badly in my last mission... So, I want to improve!"

Sai looked at Naruto and shook his head, "I was going to train, but I remembered I volunteered to call out the number in the bingo center!"

"What...?"

"I read to always volunteer in many things so that you can possibly get a scholarship for college!"

Naruto shook his head, "College? Any-Anyways, I get you... I guess I'll see you later then."

Sai nodded, "See you then."

Walking away, Sai turned to see if Naruto would run after Sakura since he was alone... but he didn't.

He looked at one of his books and frowned with confusion, "Hm..."

"Aww..." a random local girls said to him, "You're reading Romeo and Juliet? Oh, I've never met a guy like that!"

"Cut the crap out, T!" Another girl said, "We all read that in middle school!"

"Shut your bitch ass up, Q!"

Sai walked past them, ignoring their big fight causing the commotion.

"I wonder what happens at the end..." He mumbled to himself.

* * *

Sakura was walking down the streets of Konoha into the market, it was already getting towards evening and she still wasn't done with her shopping, even though she was close to.

"Hm..." Sakura thought out loud while pulling out a pen and paper, "I'm gonna still need... Milk... Grapefruit... Oh! That coconut water! What else..."

Suddenly, she felt a small tap in her shoulders. Turning around, she saw Hinata smiling shyly at her.

"Sakura!" She gave a small wave.

Grinning, Sakura said, "Oh, hey Hinata! How have you been?"

Nodding, Hinata responded, "I've been doing well. How about you?"

Sakura gave a small sigh, "A little bit of bad luck... but everything else seems to be going smoothly."

Changing the subject, Sakura playfully elbowed Hinata's arm, "I see that you and Kiba have finally decided to go out in public... Well, at least I think it was you two..."

Blushing, Hinata played with her fingers, "Yes, well, he is a very good person. I'm very glad we are t-together."

Sakura grinned, "Yea, I'm happy for you, too! You seem to be happier."

Hinata suddenly remembered why she came for Sakura in the first place.

"S-Sakura!"

Looking at Hinata for a response, Sakura asked, "Yes?"

"It would be great If you could come over at my house for some games!"

Sakura pointed to herself, "Me? Well, ok! When is it? I could use something to take my mind off."

Hinata grinned happily, "Kiba and I wanted someone to join us, since Shino is umm... out for a mission. You should come this afternoon, after you're done with shopping."

"Ok! I'll be over there in a bit, then."

"Oh, that's great!" She smiled, "I'm so glad! I'll meet you at my house, then. Goodbye!"

"Sure, see you later!"

With that, Sakura headed on ahead, turning her head to wave at the shy girl.

Hinata waved back, them turned around quickly to prepare everything.

* * *

Kiba and Akamaru walked near the training ground and spotted Naruto practicing some tai-jutsu

As Kiba walked closer, he had to cover his nose.

Akamaru did the same, giving a whine.

"Whoa!" Kiba waved away some smell, "Someone's been training _TOO_ hard!"

Turning around, Naruto saw Kiba with Akamaru and smiled, "Yo! Kiba! Akamaru!"

Kiba still held his nose and said, "You really need a shower."

Naruto sniffed his armpits and also gave a disgusted noise, "Bleh! You're right. I've been training a little bit... Anyways, What brings you here?"

Kiba finally let go of his nose and asked, "I was wondering if you could come to the Hyuuga place and play some games with Hinata and I?"

"Play games?"

Nodding, Kiba went on, "Yea, like board games or something. We usually do it with Shino, but he's out in a mission. So maybe you could join us?"

Naruto grinned, "Sure! I'll go! It'll be fun, no? But... Wait a minute..."

Kiba and Akamaru nervously looked at each other, "Yea...?"

Wiggling his eyebrows, Naruto leaned forward, "Why ask me to join, when you and Hinata can finally be together."

Kiba gulped and blushed a bit, "Hey, shut up! Hinata and I have enough dates together, but also want to spend time with friends, too!"

Naruto shrugged, but still had the sly grin on his face, "Hm, Hm, ok. If you change your mind, I'll go straight away! So you two can be _ALONE_."

Akamaru barked while Kiba sighed, "God damn it, Naruto!"

* * *

Naruto decided to go shower first, then meet them up at the Hyuuga place.

As he made his way there, he saw Kiba waiting outside, looking around along with Akamaru.

"Hey Kiba!" Naruto waved his arm.

Kiba looked up and grinned, "About time!"

Naruto then jogged up to him and smiled, "So what game is first?"

"Come inside, we can all decide there." Kiba then walked into the front yard with Naruto following.

But in a room above the Hyuuga residence, Neji watched closely at Kiba.

"Hmm what is Naruto doing here?" Neji asked out loud.

In reality, it was his room where he was at, along with TenTen.

"Neji, I thought you said we'd hang out!" TenTen crossed her arms, "Not spy on Kiba or Hinata!"

"Hold, Hold on..." Neji turned around, "Naruto's here..."

Confused, TenTen walked up to the window and looked down, "Naruto? Ah, look!"

She pointed out far to see a pink haired girl making her way to the Hyuuga residence. "It's Sakura!"

Sakura was getting near the residence. It was already almost dark outside and she was hoping she wasn't late.

But just as she reached the area, she spotted Hinata running up to the front gate.

"Hinata!" Sakura waved while jogging up to her.

"S-Sakura!" She panted while giving a faint smile.

"Hey, are you alright?" Sakura asked concerned for her, "You seem to have been in a hurry somewhere..."

But Hinata shook her head, "No, I'm fine. Let's go inside!"

Sakura nodded and began to follow her in.

Neji and TenTen watched from above Sakura get in.

"Ino must have planned this!" TenTen said while heading at the door, "Let's just peek in to see..."

Neji smiled, "That's the spirit!"

* * *

As Sakura got in, she took off her shoes and followed Hinata into the large living room.

"Wow, Hinata! Your house is enormous!" Sakura looked around to see it very well decorated.

"Yes, thank you."

But Sakura froze when she heard Naruto's loud laugh. She immediately grabbed Hinata's shoulder, also causing her to stop.

"Hinata..." Sakura asked, "Is... Naruto here?"

Hinata shrugged, "I-I'm not sure. I saw Kiba walk in with someone, b-but I didn't see who!"

Sakura shrugged, _'Hmm... I didn't know he'd be here.'_

They resumed walking and to Sakura's suspicions, it was Naruto laughing at one of Kiba's corny jokes.

"Oh, Naruto!" Hinata smiled in a 'fake' surprise. "I didn't _know_ you were here!"

But Naruto looked confused, "But you just saw me-"

He was suddenly hit by Akamaru and Kiba in the stomach.

"Ohhh..." Naruto grabbed onto his stomach tightly, "Damn it, Kiba!"

Neji and TenTen watched at a peeking door.

"So, he's abusive, ay?" Neji frowned, "Not good for Hinata OR the Hyuuga family!"

TenTen frowned and whispered, "Neji, Naruto was about to spill something!"

"Doesn't matter...!"

Sakura couldn't help but giggle a bit.

Naruto looked up and saw Sakura and grinned at her as he was about to greet her when he was interrupted by Kiba.

"Sakura!" Kiba greeted, "I didn't know Hinata was going to invite you... So I invited Naruto."

Sakura shook her head, "It'll be more fun!"

Quickly, Hinata said loudly,"W-why don't we play a video game?"

TenTen whispered to Neji, "Ninjas have video games?"

"Um yea, apparently in this story."

As Hinata quickly turned on the game system and handed everyone a remote control, Sakura walked next to Naruto and smiled, "I had no idea you'd be here."

He grinned, "Neither did I."

"How about Mario Ninja Kart?" Hinata gave a smile.

Sakura's eyes grew wide with excitement, "Yes! Oh, I love that game!"

Naruto looked over at her and smiled to himself. He loved seeing her get excited for anything.

Kiba playfully kicked Naruto to the side, "Hey, move, Uzumaki...! My seat is next to Hinata..."

Naruto moved his seat and allowed Kiba to sit. Kiba signaled Hinata to come sit next to him.

Sakura sat on the floor, but Naruto was right next to her on the seat above her.

"Ready?" Hinata asked as everyone reached the character selection.

Kiba chose dry bones (which Akamaru approved), Hinata chose princess peach, Sakura chose Princess Daisy, and Naruto chose Luigi.

They began playing in Bowser's castle.

It was only them four playing, no other CPU. It was all fun and everything... Until Naruto and Sakura got a little competitive.

 _'Yes...!'_ Sakura evilly grinned, _'I'm first!'_

But suddenly beeping went on and the blue shell came out of no where and hit her hard.

"Ha!" Naruto laughed as he quickly passed her.

Sakura frowned and quickly passed Hinata and went for a mystery box.

 _'C'mon!'_ Sakura desperately waited for it to load, _'Gimme something good!'_

And a red shell appeared, making Sakura grin evilly. Naruto was in first and she was in second.

Without hesitation, she threw the shell at him and he tripped.

Sakura passed Naruto with her character saying an, "Ah-ha!"

Sakura mimicked her voice and quickly passed the line for another lap.

 _'Oh,_ _ **HELL**_ _no!'_ Naruto thought trying to catch up to her. He did and they both started to bump into each other while passing some hot boiling lava.

But unfortunately for them, Kiba was in star mode and knocked them both into the lava.

Naruto and Sakura growled and turned their head while together yelling, "Kiba!"

Kiba laughed, "Sorry!"

As both Naruto and Sakura made it back, they raced their way to first place.

Quickly passing Hinata and Kiba, Sakura's mystery box got 3 bananas.

"How is this going to help me!?" Sakura frowned angrily while quickly setting them behind her. Naruto was in first place leaving as many traps as possible.

Kiba and Hinata looked at each otter in worry, fearing the plan may go backwards.

Sakura finally caught up to Naruto and laughed, "Finally caught up to ya!"

"Oh, shit..." Naruto mumbled to himself as they entered the final lap.

Hinata got the blue shell in her mystery box and hesitated in throwing it.

"C'mon, Hinata!" Kiba cried as he tried to reach at least second.

"B-But they'll get mad!"

She looked over and saw them aggressively pressing the buttons on their controllers. None taking their eyes off the screen.

"It's ok, it's only a game!" Kiba smiled at her. But his expression soon turned dark, "Now crush those mother f-ckers!"

Akamaru bumped into Hinata, causing her to send the blue shell.

"O-Oh no!" She cried while Kiba laughed evilly.

Naruto and Sakura were this close to reaching the finish line. Sakura stood up while chanting quickly "C'mon, C'mon!"

Naruto also stood up and yelled, "Let's-a-go Luigi!"

Tension was in the room. Who would win first?!

Neji and TenTen watched in full suspense, while chewing on their nails nervously.

Just as Naruto and Sakura were about to cross the finish line, both their controllers started to bleep quickly and loudly.

 _'...shit.'_ They both thought. And soon both exploded right behind the finish line as Kiba laughed evilly and crossed to first place.

Hinata soon followed with second and Sakura barely made it to third.

Naruto yelled out angrily, since he couldn't even cross the line, "Gahh!"

Sakura frowned, "I was this close! This close to winning!"

Hinata blushed, "I-I I'm so sorry, Sakura! I-it was an accident!"

But Sakura sighed and gave her a small smile "Its ok...! It was fun!"

Naruto mumbled angrily while sitting back down, "I'll show them who's really the best! Luigi numba one!"

Kiba was still laughing and said, "I thought it was..."

He then mimicked Waluigi's voice, "Waaaluigi numb-ahr one!"

Hinata giggled at him while covering her mouth.

Neji frowned, "Oh, so he thinks he's funny now, huh?"

TenTen smiled, "Hey, that was a good Waluigi voice!"

He crossed his arms, "Yea, I guess you're right. What are we doing here? I... I have to trust Hinata."

TenTen watched him with wide eyes, "Have... Have you finally come to your senses?"

"Only because I have to use the restroom... I'll be right back."

TenTen slapped her forehead as Neji walked out.

Everyone in the living room prepared themselves for the next race. It was intense as much as before and also the next one.

Naruto came in first the second race, with Sakura 2nd, Hinata 3rd and Kiba last.

The second to last race, Naruto came in third, Kiba in second, Hinata in last and Sakura first.

"Oh, yeah! Who's winning? Me!" Sakura sang happily as Naruto was in third.

 _'I'm gonna win and leave you in second!'_ Naruto thought as he was concentrating hard.

"Ok!" Hinata said as she pressed 'next', "Time for the final race!"

Sakura and Naruto's eyes grew wide.

"Rainbow road..." They said in disgust, but pumped up as well.

Hinata sighed, "I always die here..."

Kiba smiled at her, "Don't worry. I'll let you win, Hinata!"

Blushing a bit she looked down, "Y-You don't have to do this, Kiba."

"I'll stay by your side, Hinata..."

Neji had just come back from the bathroom and gave a pout, "Hmmmm."

"What are you guys doing?"

TenTen and Neji jumped as they turned and saw Hanabi standing there with curiosity.

"Hanabi! W-what are you doing here?" Neji asked taken back.

Her voice then got deep, "To spy on Hinata of course."

Suddenly, she transformed into Hinata's dad.

"What the!?" TenTen gasped, "Why were you disguised as your youngest daughter!?"

"Because... Her guard is let down more... And if I went in there, it'd be kinda awkward."

Neji resumed watching them, but they paused Because Sakura had to use the restroom.

"So, what's up with this Kiba guy...?" Hinata's father asked.

Neji sighed, "First, he thinks he's a funny. Then, he acts all nice. He's... Too perfect."

Raising an eyebrow he said, "Interesting... What character did he use for this game?"

TenTen answered, "Dry bones..."

Grinning, Hinata's dad said, "Well! There you have it! A perfect fit for my daughter!"

"Ok...?" TenTen said, "He was in your daughter's team for years..."

"He was!?"

Neji's head shot up, "Right! He was! And that other guy... You know, one with bugs? What's his name...?"

"Shino." TenTen gave a disappointed look, "You really don't know much about Hinata, do you?"

Hintat's dad shrugged, "I do, but you know, don't wanna get into her business!"

"Yea." Neji agreed while nodding.

TenTen almost yelled, "You guys are literally spying on her right now!"

"Dry bones is my fave character." Hinata's dad said, "That's why he's a good choice. Anyways, gotta go and... Take care of family matters..."

TenTen couldn't think anymore. She sighed and watched Neji continue to peek.

Sakura had just come back from the bathroom and cried out, "Alright, let's get started already!"

Hinata nodded and pressed the "next course" button.

Sakura held her controller tightly and so did Naruto.

As the numbers were counting down, all four pressed their buttons with every beep.

GO! The screen flashed the word and music began.

Everything was going ok so far. Until the side rails were gone.

 _'_ _S_ _hit, shit, shit!'_ Sakura thought as she was this close to falling.

"Oh, no!" Hinata cried as she fell to the space below.

Kiba was in first as Naruto and Sakura were competing on who should be second.

Naruto frowned as he bumped into Sakura's character. But getting a mystery box, he got the red shell and hit her.

He smiled triumphantly, "Nice!"

Sakura growled in frustration as she pressed the gas hard trying to catch up.

But as she made a jump in the air, she went too much on one side, that she fell into the space below.

"Hurry it up, you stupid slow ass turtle shit!" Sakura yelled at the television as she was being placed back on the road.

Now Sakura was really last and way behind.

Entering the second lap, she got a mystery box and grinned. She got the Bullet Bill and zoomed her way to catch up to her enemies.

"Alright!" She grinned as she pushed Kiba off the stage.

"Hey!" Kiba frowned as he impatiently waited to be brought up.

Hinata stopped racing and said, "I'll wait for you, Kiba!"

A single tear slid down his face and Kiba sniffed, "Thank you, Hinata...!"

But as he got on he zoomed past her, "Ha! Hinata, you're supposed to beat each other, not wait for them!"

Hinata's eye color changed to red as she pressed the gas, "I tried to be nice, Kiba!"

Sakura and Naruto were trying to push each other off as they were racing among the curvy part of the road.

Kiba and Hinata were also competing for who would win. Kiba got in front of her and yelled out, "Oh, yea!"

Hinata got a mystery box and yelled out, "Take this!"

She transformed into the super star and knocked out Kiba into the space below.

She smirked at him as she went to catch up to the others.

Sakura was in first place, holding dearly onto a banana for protection.

She had a good distance away from Naruto and the others. Her heart was racing as she made it to the final lap.

She jumped and hoped to land, and she did. Getting a mystery box, she got a green shell.

Naruto was in last place and he frowned as he went to get a mystery box.

He gave an evil smirk as he sent the blue shell, "Better run, Sakura, you've got shit comin!"

Sakura began to panic as her controller bleeped loudly and saw Hinata and the others quickly catch up.

But just as she went through the "speedy star jump", the blue shell missed because of how fast she was going.

"Yes!" Sakura laughed as she landed, "Oh, _NO_! Aw, did your plan not work, Na-ru-to?"

Naruto angrily watched the screen as he pushed his way past Princess Peach and Dry Bones.

"Aw, boo hoo!" Sakura laughed as she saw the finish line.

Unfortunately, she did not see a banana there, right before the finish line... And slipped.

"Shit!" Sakura yelled.

Natuto laughed at her, but since Sakura still had a banana behind her, Naruto bumped into her.

The bump made her cross the finish line and him to slip in circles. While he was doing that, Hinata came in second and Kiba third.

Naruto gave out a frustrated growl as he could not even finish the race... again.

"Whoo!" Sakura cheered, "I won! I won!"

Hinata laughed as she saw Kiba's face, "I guess I also won you, Kiba!"

He gave her a smile, "Guess you did beat me..."

Akamaru barked as he went to jump on Hinata.

Sakura looked over at Naruto and smiled, "Hey, don't look so sad..."

He looked up at her and gave her a small smile, "Yeah, it's only a race... and my dignity..."

She laughed at him as she playfully pushed him, "Nah, don't take it so hard. I am the best anyways."

"I'll get you next time, Sakura!" He grinned as there was a sudden crash.

Looking around, they saw TenTen and Neji on the floor groaning and holding their foreheads.

"Damn it, Neji!" TenTen stood up, "The door!"

"Ouch, ouch, ouch!" Neji soon stood up, "I-"

He froze as he saw that Hinata and the others looking at them.

Getting all defensive, Neji yelled out, "We were totally not spying on you!"

Smiling a bit, Hinata said, "Why don't you two join us? We were going to play some other game."

TenTen clapped her hands happily, "Oh, that sounds good! Better than what I was doing with Neji!"

Neji crossed his arms and pointed at Hintat, "Alright, alright... but first... how did you and Kiba get together?!"

Hinata blushed, her face all red, "I-I-"

 _'He found out!'_

Kiba chuckled nervously and said, "Well…. It was when I was going out with one of the local girls…"

 _Kiba had just finished arguing with his girlfriend over the dumbest thing in the universe. He sat at the park bench all angry with himself. It was already getting dark out, but he wanted to cool down his head._

" _I should just, break up with her already… she's so… ugh!"_

 _He placed his elbows on his knees and held his head while mumbling, "I should have just asked Hinata out whether she liked Naruto or not…"_

 _Akamaru sighed as he sat next to Kiba._

 _Kiba patted his dog and smiled, "Should have seen the first sign when she said she hated dogs."_

 _Suddenly the bushes moved a bit and Kiba, along with Akamaru, looked up, all alert._

 _Hinata came out and nervously laughed while blushing, "K-Kiba!"_

 _He blinked a bit, "Hinata? What… what are you wearing?"_

 _She was wearing a short black poofy dress, with high heels with black tights. She also had a lot of bracelets in her arms and heavy eye makeup._

 _She took a deep breath and yelled, "HIT IT!"_

 _All of a sudden, the whole atmosphere changed, it was all magenta colors and pink filled with other colors that were happy. Random band members got out their guitar and drums and started to play "Girlfriend" by Avril Lavigne. Hinata's character suddenly changed as she started to sing._

[Chorus]

Hey! Hey! You! You!

I don't like your girlfriend!

No way! No way!

I think you need a new one

Hey! Hey! You! You!

I could be your girlfriend

Hey! Hey! You! You!

I know that you like me

No way! No way!

I know it's not a secret

Hey! Hey! You! You!

I want to be your girlfriend

 _Kiba stood wide eyed at this as Hinata sang and danced along with other dancers. All of a sudden, his "girlfriend" came stomping to him, all angry._

" _Well, are you done being all stupid? Are you going to apologize?" She asked while stomping her foot at him with arms crossed._

 _Hinata glared at the girl and pushed her out the way, to wrap her arm around Kiba's neck._

[Verse 1]

You're so fine

I want you mine

You're so delicious

I think about you all the time

You're so addictive

Don't you know what I could do to make you feel alright (alright, alright, alright)?

Don't pretend I think you know I'm damn precious

And Hell Yeah

I'm the motherf*cking princess

I can tell you like me too and you know I'm right

 _Kiba's "girlfriend" gasped and frowned angrily watching Hinata get her way with Kiba. Hinata smirked as she pushed past her, while pulling Kiba near her. The whole time, Hinata gave her nasty looks and ones that looked as if she felt sorry for the girl._

[Bridge:]

She's like so whatever

You could do so much better

I think we should get together now

And that's what everyone's talking about!

 _The girl growled angrily to what Hinata was singing about her. Hinata pulled out a picture of her and tore it apart, then set it on fire with an evil look. With that, she kicked the girl out of the way and ran up to Kiba, wrapping her arms around him._

[Chorus:]

Hey! Hey! You! You!

I don't like your girlfriend!

No way! No way!

I think you need a new one

Hey! Hey! You! You!

I could be your girlfriend

Hey! Hey! You! You!

I know that you like me

No way! No way!

You know it's not a secret

Hey! Hey! You! You!

I want to be your girlfriend

 _The girl stomped her way and pulled Kiba out of Hinata's arms, and trying to wrap her arms around him. Kiba sighed and tried to pull away and looked at Hinata, who looked so done with that girl._

' _lil bitch.' Hinata thought while rolling her eyes. But she turned her head towards Kiba and began to pull him towards her._

[Verse 2]

I can see the way, I see the way you look at me

And even when you look away I know you think of me

I know you talk about me all the time again and again (again, again, again)

So come over here, tell me what I want to hear

Better yet make your girlfriend disappear

I don't want to hear you say her name ever again (and again, and again, and again!)

 _Suddenly they had the power to defy gravity and started to fly in the air, as they spun around. The girl frowned angrily as she waited in line to talk to Isaac Newton about this whole gravity shit. Hinata and Kiba laughed from above at how the girl also wanted to fly._

[Bridge]

She's like so whatever

You could do so much better

I think we should get together now

And that's what everyone's talking about!

[Chorus]

Hey! Hey! You! You!

I don't like your girlfriend!

No way! No way!

I think you need a new one

Hey! Hey! You! You!

I could be your girlfriend

Hey! Hey! You! You!

I know that you like me

No way! No way!

You know it's not a secret

Hey! Hey! You! You!

I want to be your girlfriend

 _As they weren't watching, a large plane came out of nowhere and almost hit them. They lost their power and started to fall to the ground, while holding hands. Hinata still sang while falling and looking at him._

 _As they somehow safely made it to the ground, the girl tried to beat up Hinata, but she was a ninja and the girl wasn't. So, Hinata activated her Byakugan and pushed her away with her palms. The girl fell on one of the ponds nearby and splashed angrily._

In a second you'll be wrapped around my finger

'cause I can, 'cause I can do it better

There's no other

So when's it gonna sink in?

She's so stupid

What the hell were you thinking?!

[repeat]

 _Hinata smiled as she spun around with Kiba holding her hands. While passing, the girl, Hinata gave her the middle finger with a smirk as Akamaru jumped on the pond and began to slash water all over her._

[Chorus x2]

Hey! Hey! You! You!

I don't like your girlfriend!

No way! No way!

I think you need a new one

Hey! Hey! You! You!

I could be your girlfriend

No way! No way!

Hey! Hey! You! You!

I know that you like me

No way! No way!

You know it's not a secret

Hey! Hey! You! You!

I want to be your girlfriend

No way! No way!

Hey! Hey!

 _Hinata pulled Kiba close and gave him a deep kiss on the lips. He was taken back a bit, but he also kissed her, too, holding her against him._

" _FINE!" The girl yelled, all wet and muddy from the pond, "You two can go out! I never loved you anyways,_ _ **Kiba**_ _! I was cheating on you in the first place!"_

 _Kiba and Hinata stopped kissing and looked at her annoyed._

" _What?" Kiba asked, still holding Hinata._

 _The girl smirked, "You heard me. You know that guy that sells watermelon down the street? Him! He's so much better than you! And best of all, he doesn't have_ _ **dogs.**_ _"_

 _Akamaru barked furiously and started to chase the poor girl, who was screaming loudly and ran off into the distance._

 _Hinata smirked, "Finally, that two-timed slut is gone!"_

 _Kiba blinked, "H-Hinata! I've never known you like this!"_

 _Blushing madly, Hinata took a deep breath, "I-I I'm sorry! I-I just t-thought that maybe, you l-liked those types of g-girls?"_

 _Kiba smiled, "No, I really liked the old Hinata… I don't mind this one, but the one that makes you comfortable to you, is what I like."_

 _Hinata smiled and blushed, "Thank you, Kiba!"_

 _But his eyes grew wide for a second, "Wait… what about Naruto? Are you sure you want to be… with me?"_

 _She gave a sincere smile, "I thought I had feelings for him, but when I saw him go out with Sakura, I didn't get mad or jealous. So I figured it wasn't that type of love I had for him."_

 _Kiba leaned forward and slowly pressed his lips onto hers. She smiled for a bit before returning the kiss._

"AND FIREWORKS EXPLODED IN THE BACKGROUND!" Kiba said all dramatically while making sound effects, "Whoosh! Whoosh!"

He waved his arms around, "The band members started throwing flower petals at us, too! And that's how we ended up together!"

Hinata blushed while covering her face, "Oh…!"

Neji frowned and crossed his arms, "Hinata-sama would _never_ sing that song or act that way!"

Looking up, Hinata sighed, "W-W-Well, it was sort of like that. Except we didn't fly in the air almost getting hit by a plane. And the girl wasn't mean... she was actually a nice person."

Akamaru barked while wagging his tail.

Kiba sighed, "Alright, alright, the fireworks was a lie, too… but the band part was totally real."

Sakura blinked a bit, "H-Hinata! I would have never guessed you would do that!"

Naruto wrapped his arm around Sakura's shoulder and said, "Hey, do you want me to do that? Except, I'll sing _don't cha wish your boyfriend was hot like meee?_ "

Sakura rolled her eyes as she pushed him off as she laughed a bit, "Get out, I don't have a boyfriend! But, Hinata, I can't believe you did that!"

Wanting to escape this, Hinata said loudly, "L-Let's just play some games!"

* * *

 **Ayo, ayo! I think this is the longest chapter? Or is it the last one... but anyways, sorry if its "not focused", I had to, y'know, fill in some holes and stuff to continue the story. Now, I just wanna say this chapter is a birthday gift for DUH BOMB! So, happy birthday! You really are _duh bomb_ haha ok I'll stop. But yeah, have a great birthday! I was gonna upload earlier as in 2 AM earlier, but I was just too tired and had to wait until now. But hey, earlier than usual updates. Thanks so much for all the support, luv yall! (and happy birthday, again lol)**

 **You guys... i was this close to not being able to upload! My laptop was acting weird talking about "Not able to connect to DNS" and shit... I think its infected because I'm in safe mode and on internet. But long story short, if I don't upload soon, it's because I either went to get it fixed or got a new laptop and transferring the story there... hopefully I'll upload soon!**


	20. Worst Night Ever

CH 20: Worst Night Ever

* * *

"What do you want to do next?" asked Hinata as she sat on the sofa next to Kiba. The whole group was sitting down trying to figure out what to do next.

 _'We didn't think this far!'_ Hinata gave a mini panic thought.

Kiba stood up, "Let's um play a game! Um, called..."

 _'Shit...'_ Kiba thought, _'What to do to make these two like each other again!?'_

Neji sighed, "Alright. I've got it. In order to make sure that Kiba is eligible to be part of the-"

Hinata quickly covered Neji's mouth, "A-Anyways! K-Kiba! You were saying?"

But Kiba shook his head, showing her he had no clue what to do.

Neji finally let go of Hinata and frowned, "Kiba, let's see how good you are in taking care of babies!"

Naruto and Sakura's eyes grew wide, "Huh!?"

Hinata's face was so red, people would think it was a giant blood stain on her face. Or maybe ketchup.

Kiba frowned, "What? I've taken care of Akakmaru when he was just a pup! Look at him now, all strong and obedient! Right Akakmaru?"

The giant dog barked while Neji wasn't convinced, "No, if you for some ridiculous reason ever marry Hinata, I'm sure kids will happen... And if you can't take care of them, then how can the Hyuuga family prosper!?"

TenTen crossed her arms and frowned at Neji, "Are you serious?! Discuss this some other time!"

Sakura saw Hinata feeling embarrassed and looked at Neji, "Well what about you? Aren't you planning to have some in the future? What if you are the one that can't take care of kids!"

Neji's eyes grew wide as he slowly sat down, "You're right... I... I have to test my skills!"

TenTen yelled angrily, "You're too young to be thinking of that! Isn't this a game night!? What are we? 30-year-olds having parental problems!?"

Neji frowned, "Ok, then let's make this a game..."

He ran out of the room for a while. TenTen sighed, "Hinata, I'm sorry... This was supposed to be fun-"

"N-no, there's nothing to be done. He's my cousin..." Hinata sighed with a blushing face and bright red ears.

Naruto snickered as he saw Kiba crossing his arms.

"Ah, shut up, Naruto!" Kiba frowned at him.

 _'Damn it, this was supposed to be a game night for you two... There's always tomorrow's carnival... Unless something extremely stupid happens.'_ Kiba thought.

Just then Neji came back... With a baby?

TenTen gasped, "Neji what the hell? Just leave them be!"

"Ah ha!" Neji grinned as he handed the baby to Hinata, "This is obviously a fake baby. But it works like a real one! If you two pass this test, then Kiba is qualified to be part of the Hyuuga."

 _'Talking about marriage, children, the future!?'_ Hinata thought worriedly, _'It wasn't long ago that we started dating!'_

Hinata was about to protest, when Neji brought out another baby out of no where, "And! I'll take care of this one!"

TenTen frowned, "By yourself!? _Oh my..._ You need help, so I guess I'll help you..."

Hinata then looked at Naruto and Sakura looking scared, ready to make a run. Suddenly an idea popped in her mind.

"H-hey!" She told Neji, "Why not give one to Sakura?"

Sakura looked at her with sad eyes. She knew why the oh-so "innocent" Hinata asked that request. So she won't feel like a total wierdo.

 _'She doesn't want to be that embarrassed... It's the least I could do..'_ Sakura thought as she turned to Neji, "Yeah, I'll join in this contest..."

 _'Your'e not alone, Hinata!'_ Sakura thought as Hinata spoke, "W-with Naruto!"

Naruto's eyes grew wide, "M-me!? I mean sure, but- ouch!"

Sakura had kicked him and then pulled him out away from the group. She then whisper to him, "Listen, she feels embarrassed about this, at least let's not leave her alone."

"I agree, but she's got Kiba, I don't think-"

"Please? Come on, it'll be fun." Sakura smiled at him.

She turned around to see Neji with three baby bags and another baby to give to Sakura.

"Where do you get this?" She sighed at him as she was also surprised to where he had gotten the other baby from.

"Well, this test could not be avoided." Neji said looking at Hinata and Kiba, "Sooner or later, I knew this would come. And I knew whoever Hinata-sama brought would break the baby in less than a day!"

Kiba grabbed the bag in competitive mode, "We'll take good care of our little girl! Her name will be... Baby Girl!"

Neji frowned, "That's the name of your kid? Baby Girl?"

Kiba sighed, "It's not real."

Ignoring him, Neji pointed at the baby's stomach, which had some meter.

"This tells you how happy it is. The less you pay attention to it, the lower it goes. Also, it can actually poo and pee... And drink... And burp... And cry like the real thing. Make sure the meter is at least in the 90s when done. We have a week!"

Neji got his baby and covered it with blankets, "It can also feel temperature, so don't let it be too cold or too hot!"

Naruto got the baby bag and Sakura held the fake baby.

"Um... What should we name it?" Naruto asked.

"Hmm.. Menma..." Sakura said softly, "I mean, what do you think?"

Naruto smiled, "Sure, that sounds like a great name! Although... Why do I feel like that's a complete opposite of me in another world...Like... in a world made by a masked guy... who I find out killed my parents-"

Neji then spoke out, ignoring him, "Also, the babies are hearing sensitive, like the real ones."

Sakura looked at the baby and gave small single cough. It opened its plastic eyes and started to cry loudly. Her eyes grew wide as she looked around it, "What's wrong? He isn't dirty, is he hungry?"

Naruto opened the bag and pulled out a blanket, "Here, maybe he's cold!"

While Sakura wrapped the baby in a blanket, Naruto took out a baby bottle, which had somehow baby milk in it.

Sakura looked up to see Neji hogging the baby to himself as TenTen sighed next to him, holding all the items.

Naruto handed Sakura the bottle, but the Menma kept crying.

Sakura then called out, "Are they sensitive to food temperature?"

"Yes! All like the real thing!" Neji said as he rocked his kid to sleep... But it was already asleep.

TenTen moved closer and whispered, "Um, the kid's asleep... maybe stop _rocking_ it to death?!"

"Just in case, TenTen..." Neji whispered back.

Naruto nodded after hearing Neji. He took the bottle and ran to the kitchen to heat it up.

Hinata then called out, "U-um our microwave doesn't work! It hasn't worked since forever..."

Kiba looked at her wide eyed, "You are like the richest people here and your microwave doesn't work!?"

Naruto ran back hearing his fake kid starting to cry louder as Sakura rocked the baby while singing him some tunes.

"What?! What type of rich house-!" He yelled as all the babies started to cry at once, causing pain the the ears. Like for real pain.

"Naruto!" Kiba yelled angrily, "You woke up Baby Girl!"

Neji frowned as the babies cried harder and louder. The cries were so loud, that the windows started to crack and some random ninja car started to beep outside.

Everyone was panicking except for Neji, who was checking on his own kid.

But far into Konoha, the Uchiha brothers, Itachi and Sasuke, were chilling in their dad's office.

Suddenly someone came in the office, all scared looking.

"What's wrong?" Asked Itachi.

"Trouble!" the poor person gasped, "In the Hyuuga residence! Aliens... Attacking!"

Both looked at each other, not certain of what they just heard, and ran to the residence.

Once they got there, they had to cover their ears from the loud screeching noises.

"Some kind of jutsu!?" Sasuke yelled as they pushed themselves inside, activating their sharingans.

Naruto grabbed his kid and began to cry with him "Its only been five minutes!"

"Naruto!?" Sasuke yelled, "What's going on here!"

Gasping for joy, Naruto gave Menma back to Sakura as he ran up to Sasuke with the cold baby bottle.

"Use your fireball jutsu to warm the milk up!" Naruto yelled.

Hesitating, Sasuke yelled, "Mini fireball jutsu!"

A small fire ball appeared from his mouth as Naruto warmed it up. Finishing up, Naruto grinned, "Thanks! My kids been starving, that's why."

Itachi's eyes grew wide, "You have a son!?"

Naruto gave the bottle to Sakura as she then fed the little baby. Menma suddenly shut up, drinking the milk. Somehow the other two babies slowed down crying.

Neji stood up, "It's a test. But thank you for your concern."

After a second, the two brothers walked out slowly, unsure what they had just witnessed.

As they walked back, Sasuke spoke, "That could be really good to use against the enemy..."

Itachi said nothing as Sasuke then spoke again, "Hey... Was I that loud when I was a baby?"

Cringing at the memory, Itachi looked at Sasuke, "Um, no, not really!"

Flashback-

 ** _"WaaahhhhhhhHHHH -insert demon shriek-!"_**

End of flashback-

"Not at all, little brother! You were an angel!"

Sasuke sighed of relief, "Good... I don't understand why Dad's always saying I was."

Itachi gave a nervous chuckle, "N-nah! Anyways, let's get going."

* * *

A good thirty minutes passed with all six of then trying to put asleep the fake babies.

Their faces were dry and could make out the bone outline on their faces as well.

Neji smiled as the baby was finally asleep, "Y-You see? No problem... Neji Jr here... Is all asleep..."

Hinata grabbed her baby and softly cried, "I can't do this..!"

Kiba's bony face looked at her as he said in a raspy voice, "We can do this... -cough- A-Akamaru... Help..."

But Akamaru sighed as he laid down on the floor.

Sakura stopped rocking Menma as she could tell it was asleep, "Ok, we need to put him in a quiet place..."

Naruto looked around, "I have no idea where... Hey, Neji! Have a quiet room?"

Neji nodded, "Yeah! We can put them in my room."

After finishing that task, all six gave a huge sigh of relief.

Walking back, TenTen spoke, "Ok, so what game should we play?"

Kiba's eyes grew wide, "Why not guitar hero?"

Neji frowned and grabbed Kiba's collar, "Are you nuts!? That loud noise could wake up my son!"

Sakura crossed her arms, "Why not monopoly? Its quiet."

Naruto gave a thinking sound, "Hm... Have... Have we ever finished a monopoly game before?"

"Then what else?" Sakura asked.

Kiba looked at Hinata and they both nodded. Turning their heads, they said, "Truth or dare!"

Once again, Neji frowned, "What!? What if it's something loud?"

TenTen crossed her arms, "Quiet Truth or dare!"

Neji agreed as long as it was quiet. They all sat down at a table and got settled.

"Hold on..." Naruto said to Sakura, "If I'm a dad now... Can I make dad jokes?"

Sakura sweat-dropped, "Please don't be like Asuma-sensei..."

TenTen then began, "I'll start, ok? I choose... Hinata!"

Hinata jumped a little bit, "O-ok!"

"Truth or dare?"

"Um, truth!"

TenTen sighed, "Ah... Hinata! Ok, is it true that... You... That you've done something illegal!?"

Hinata gulped, "I-It's true."

Neji gasped as he stood up yelling, "Hinata-sama!"

That cry made one of the babies cry, making Neji to their rescue. TenTen laughed as she leaned forward to her and said, "What did you do!?"

Hesitating, Hinata spoke, "I illegally downloaded a song onto my ninja iPod..."

Kiba laughed as he said, "Shit, I do that all the time!"

All of a sudden loud sirens were heard with helicopters flying over the residence.

"What the!?" Sakura yelled as some Anbu men crashed throughout the windows with huge guns aiming at the group. They all raised their arms up as some Anbu came and grabbed Kiba.

"You are under arrest, Kiba Inuzuka!" an Anbu yelled, "You have the right to remain silent."

Naruto frowned, "Wait! What did he do?"

"Didn't you hear, kid!?" Another Anbu yelled, "He illegally downloaded music! And not a very good taste... Anime openings to cheesy shows..."

Just then Neji came running downstairs with all the babies, "Ha! That's what a criminal like you gets! Look your kid is crying!"

Another Anbu came and grabbed Hinata, "You too! I know it was only one song, but still! An ok taste, the one that goes _'na na na! Then we go yeh yeh yeh'_."

Neji gasped, "Hinata-sama! Here at least take care of your kid in prison!"

He threw the baby in the air with Kiba catching it, both were terribly confused and a bit scared.

Sakura frowned, "Hey! That's our son!"

Naruto grabbed his kid, "Neji, for real!?"

"Whoops!" Neji said as he gave the right one, "Don't worry, Hinata sama! I'll make sure you get out soon!"

"W-wait!" Hinata and Kiba yelled as they were taken away.

Neji gave his baby to TenTen and said, "Well, I gotta bail them out... Come on TenTen."

TenTen gave Sakura and Naruto a sad smile, "Sorry this night was terrible. Take care of your kid!"

With that they left Naruto and Sakura in the middle of rubbish.

"Well..." Sakura spoke, "I guess-"

Just then a loud voice boomed through the house, "Did Hinata get arrested _AGAIN_!?"

It was her father.

Slowly walking away, Naruto and Sakura then started to run for it.

"What the hell was that all about!?" Sakura yelled as they both ran.

They ran for a while more into the village until they slowed down a bit.

Naruto gave a few breaths, "First we get a kid, Kiba and Hinata get arrested in the most ridiculous way... And Hinata has a criminal record!?"

Sakura shook her head, "This was suppose to be game night, not... Weird shit stuff... Shit things happening!"

After stopping, Sakura spoke, "Ok... So, want to come live at my house for a week? Or should I go to yours?"

Naruto thought for a moment, "Hm... Let's go to my place to pick up some things, we can be at your place because... It's more suitable for a baby."

Sakura nodded, "You're right."

They walked in the lonely quiet streets of Konoha... With a crying baby.

"Shh... Sh..." Sakura rocked the baby in her arms, "it's ok, it's ok! Fake Mommy's right here, aww, are you hot?"

"... Or nahh?" Naruto mumbled.

Getting annoyed, Sakura turned her head to Naruto, "He won't be quiet! I don't get it... I'm a doctor... I don't..."

"Here, let me see..." Naruto took the baby in his arms, "He obviously prefers his fake father, look how happy he is!"

Just then Menma did the loudest screech ever, causing Naruto to hand it back to Sakura. That calmed the fake baby down... A lot.

"Obviously not." Sakura laughed.

But it kept crying and crying... Sakura placed it on her shoulder, lightly patting it's back, but it wouldn't stop.

As they walked down the streets, people would wake up, open their windows and yell, "Shut that thing up!"

Sakura frowned at one of them, "The thing that needs to shut up is your ugly face! Damn, you ugly! How many mirrors have you broken? When was the last time you walked up to someone and they didn't scream? Hm? Wanna know why my baby is screaming and crying?! It's because it sensed your disgusting look and wanted to warn us! Ugly ass motherf-cker..."

The person who yelled it sniffed, "Damn... Didn't have to put it that way... I always knew I was ugly... Alright, I'll shut up."

Naruto gulped, "Sakura..."

She gave a huff, "No one tells my son to shut up but me...! Or you, because you're the dad..."

After a while, Menma finally got quiet. Reaching to Naruto's place, they went inside.

"Ugh, this place..." Sakura's eyes grew wide, "Is so clean! Naruto! Wow...!"

Naruto's eyes grew wide as he mumbled, "Whoa, when did I do this?"

As Sakura walked in to sit down, Naruto went to get his clothes.

"Hmm..." Sakura thought out loud, "Maybe we could stay here...it seems so n-"

She froze suddenly, her body became cold as her heart started to beat faster.

Right in front of her, the door opened by itself and slammed shut loudly. It kept doing it as cleaning supplies started to be thrown all over the place.

"What the!?" Sakura stood up, holding Menma close to her.

The cleaning supplies started to clean the windows and kitchen. There were little giggles heard as the whole furniture started to shake violently.

"This house is possessed!" Sakura gasped as she ran to find Naruto, "Naruto!"

He turned around without his shirt on, "Yeah?"

She blinked a bit, "Sorry, I didn't know you were changing- but this house is possessed! The whole furniture is shaking and doors closing by themselves!"

Naruto frowned as he thought for a moment. He then grinned, "Ah...! That's what Gaara was telling me...! We played this game called "ouji board" and weird stuff happened since then."

Sakura's eyes twitched, "You've opened the door of the other side! It's now here! Ah, no this is terrible for the baby! We are staying at my house, you will be staying there until this is solved!"

Naruto shrugged, "Ah, it's not that bad... My house is cleaner now! I think it's a spirit that likes to clean."

Sakura shook her head, "Naruto please... I don't want nothing bad to happen, those things give me chills, please stay with me? What if you get possessed!?"

"P-possessed!?" Naruto's eyes grew wide, "S-Shit, not that! Well, I guess it's a win win... I get to stay at your place for as long as I want... And this place will be cleaned."

Sakura walked closer to Naruto, "Hurry up, I'm getting very spooked."

Naruto nodded as he placed on a clean shirt, "I'll get some things in my suitcase."

Sakura turned around to look at his surprisingly clean room. But looking at the mirror, she saw a tall dark figure hovering behind her. Gasping, she turned around to see nothing. Turning back to the mirror, she screamed as a scary face with blood coming out of their eyes stared at her with a sharp grin.

"Why am I so scared of these shits!?" Sakura yelled, "I can punch a mountain, but can't punch this! Naruto, hurry up!"

Naruto came back, "I'm done! Let's go!"

But just as they were about to leave, the front door slam shut as everything started to shake... Harlem shake, nah, but for real.

"What the hell?!" Sakura yelled tugging close to Naruto as some figure emerged from the door. In a soft voice, it spoke, "What about the bills?"

Naruto gulped, "Um, I only have 2.50 in my wallet! Besides Tsunade-baa-chan pays my bills!"

Sakura frowned, "She what!? Do you know how much she is suffering with money!? Naruto, I _KNOW_ you have more than 2.50."

The voice kept going, but louder, "I meant the Benjamins... You owe us at least 3,000 for all the cleaning service, because your house was so messy, the national dumpster looked cleaner. We are cleaning spirits, we go in the household once summoned on the ouji board. "

Naruto frowned, "What are Benjamins?"

The voice sighed, "Look, its bills of one hundred dollars."

But Naruto was still confused, "What are those?"

Yelling in frustration, the voice yelled, "American money! From America!"

"What's America? It sounds unfair!"

Sakura pulled out her wallet and threw some money, "Here! Just take this! And buy some tic-tacs! Your breath stinks!"

The voice sighed, "Alright, alright... You still owe us, Uzumaki..."

With that, everything went back to normal.

In an instant both Sakura and Naruto ran out. Sakura yelled, "I'm hiring 50 priests to holyize or whatever to this place! Naruto, how could you play that?"

"Aw, Sakura I'm sorry... I honestly thought it was a board game!"

After a while of looking around to make sure it was safe, Sakura pulled Naruto close and whispered, "Don't tell anyone I was scared half to death... Especially Ino! She'll never take this off my back!"

Naruto grinned, "Heh, sure, but it comes with a price..."

She slowly backed away, "It depends... What is it?"

"Go on a date with me tomorrow. " He said casually.

Sakura looked at him and smiled, "A date?"

"Yeah, I mean... Since we're starting all over again, I thought... A date would be ok. That is... If you want to take this step..." Naruto didn't want to look at her. He feared she would refuse or make something up.

"Alright." Sakura simply told him, "Let's have a date tomorrow. Why not at the carnival they are having?"

Naruto's eyes grew wide as he turned to her, "Seriously? You're giving me another chance for being so stupid?"

She stopped walking and pointed at him, "You better not come up with some bullshit saying you were lying to me! Because I swear I will knock you out! Swear, you are telling the truth."

He looked at her and smiled softly, "Sakura- wait... Do you smell that?"

Sakura sniffed the air, "Yeah I've been smelling it for a while now..."

Naruto covered his nose, "Ugh, it's disgusting! Anyways, what I wanted to tell you is, that-"

"It's the baby!" Sakura held out Menma in front of her, "Quick, get me some wipes and diaper."

Searching in the bag, Naruto frowned, "Wait... What is that again?"

Sighing, Sakura took the bag and handed the fake baby to him.

Naruto coughed, "Damn, these are a bit too real to be fake!"

"Shit, there's only few diapers... And a couple of wipes... We can go to the store tomorrow." Sakura spoke, "Now, where to change him?"

"On that bench!" Naruto desperately yelled, "Let's just change him quick! His happy meter is going down, he's also starting to cry!"

Sakura placed her hands on her hips, "A bench? That's terrible! Placing him on a hard cold wooden seat! At least place some blanket underneath..."

Naruto ran to the nearest bench and handed Menma to Sakura, "Here."

Rolling her eyes, Sakura grabbed the baby and placed it down to change.

"This is so disgusting..." She mumbled. Once she was done, she gave the dirty diaper to Naruto, "Throw this away."

He took it and threw it out to the nearest trashcan.

After wrapping the baby, Sakura looked at Naruto, "Wow, _great_ job! When you have a real kid, is that what you're going to do? You've got to suck it up!"

"I promise to do a better job." He sighed, "I mean... Being a parent is kinda hard. You really can't do anything."

"Naruto, it's only been an hour and a half... We have a whole week ahead of us!"

He then frowned, "Are we going to take the baby with us on our date?"

Sakura looked at the fake baby, "I... Aw, look at him. We can't leave him! We have to take him, if we don't want to loose, we have to have him happy."

"Let's just take him to Tsunade-baa-chan." Naruto spoke.

"Or that, ok." But then Sakura gasped, "What about Deidara? We promised to visit him, I mean we can't be cruel, right? Do you really think he deserves to be locked up in there?"

Meanwhile with Deidara...

"Ugh, when are these little ninjas going to come and get me out!?" Deidara frowned as he sat in his cell.

Just then the main doors opened wide to find two people yelling.

"H-Hold on! It was only those songs! Look, tell the artists that I am a bigger fan because I'm going to jail for them!"

Deidara frowned as he looked up to see a brown haired guy with red paint on his face. Next to him was a violet haired girl was a baby in her arms.

"Quiet!" an Anbu said as he pushed both of them to the cell next to Deidara's.

"Wait!" Kiba yelled.

Hinata sighed, "Kiba, you'll wake the baby up! His happy meter is already low and Neji is going to give us a 10 hour speech!"

"Shit, we do not want that." He mumbled.

Deidara smirked as he leaned against the wall, "Well! Looks like the _WHOLE_ family is here."

Kiba looked up and frowned, "An Akatsuki... Deidara. Serves you right to be in jail!" He then yelled to the nearest security guard, "Hey!"

"Whaddaya want?" He snapped.

"Why are we next to one of the biggest criminals!? We got a kid here!"

The security man frowned, "Because downloading illegal music is the worst crime of all..."

Kiba sweat-dropped, "Ok and mass murdering is not, I got you."

 _'Hmmm...'_ Deidara frowned, _'I got a feeling I gotta convince these two, erm, three that I'm no criminal... And I haven't seen Zetsu in a minute... Where is he?'_

Deidara looked at them, "Look... I came here on my own will..."

Hinata looked at him, "You did? Oh, so you want to help the leaf? You're so kind!"

 _'Damn she's stupid!'_

"Yes! I came to tell information of the whereabouts of the Akatsuki... I was tired of doing evil and..." He sniffed and let out a few tears, "I want to change!"

Hinata looked at him with sad eyes, "Oh! I know you can change! You did the right thing!"

Kiba frowned, "Yea right!"

She turned to him, "Kiba, please! Give him an opportunity to tell his redemption tale?"

Deidara took in some air, "Of course! It all started way after killing the Kazekage..."

Kiba crossed his arms, "Oh my god..."

* * *

Naruto and Sakura walked in her place with a, once again, crying baby.

"Want to eat something?" Sakura asked Naruto as she cradled the baby.

"If you have anything, here let me take Menma from you." He told her as he reached for the baby.

Giving the baby, Sakura nodded, "Ok, I'll see what I can find, I went grocery shopping recently."

She left to the kitchen as Naruto sat on the couch holding out Menma.

"How do they make these babies so real...?" He mumbled to himself as the baby kept crying.

"Hey, Naruto!" Sakura called from where she was, "How about something simple? I dunno microwave noodles?"

He stood up to walk over to her, "I guess, I mean it's better than nothing. Hey, how often do babies eat!? I think he's hungry!"

Sakura sighed, "I honestly don't know... I never studied that much in maternity stuff... I think it's hungry? I'll get the bottle, hold on..."

She walked past him as Naruto mimicked Menma's cries.

Sakura opened the baby bag and sighed, "There's too little of everything! Tomorrow we have to go baby shopping... Neji little- ugh!"

She took out the formula and mixed it up on the bottle, then went to heat it up.

"Waahh!" Naruto mimicked him, "Waahh!"

Sakura snatched the baby away, "Hey, hey! Stop doing that! What if it understands you? Hurting his feelings!"

"It's so loud!" Naruto crossed his arms, "And it's fake."

She leaned closer to him and whispered, "You may never know... Who knows, maybe Neji stole this from Orochimaru or something?"

He nodded, "You're probably right..." he looked at the fake baby and smiled at it, "Aw, I'm sorry... You're not that loud..."

The microwave beeped as the formula was ready.

"I'll feed him." Naruto said as he got out the bottle and shook it a little.

After feeding Menma, Sakura had two noodle cups in her hands, "Come on, leave Menma on my bed to sleep... Wait, he is asleep, right?"

He looked at the baby, "Um, I guess so."

As he went to place the baby to sleep, Sakura placed both noodle cups on the table.

A sudden feeling of being watched washed over her, sending her chills. She pretended not to let it bother her as Naruto came back.

"Ok, I think he is asleep." He spoke as Sakura handed him some chop sticks.

She nodded while sitting down, still having that weird feeling.

"Hey, are you ok?" He asked her, while sitting next to her.

"Yeah! I'm fine, just tired..." She smiled at him, "Let's eat."

They ate in silence for a minute, well actually, yes, there was some noise. It was Naruto devouring the food, damn he's hungry!

She chuckled, "Hey, calm down, there's still more if you want."

He grinned at her, "Yeah, sorry about that, I haven't eaten since training."

Sakura sighed as she pushed her cup at him, "You can have mine, I'm not that hungry anyways."

Not hesitating, Naruto took the cup away, "Thank you!"

She watched him eat while resting her head on the table. Sakura chuckled a bit while poking Naruto's face, "You've got something there."

He blushed a bit, "Whoops, heh..."

Sitting back up, Sakura got a napkin out and wiped it off, "You're so messy sometimes..."

She leaned closer to him, while slowly closing her eyes. Naruto did the same leaning closer to kiss her when-

The baby started to cry.

 _'That damn son of mine!'_ Naruto yelled in his mind as Sakura got up.

"Shit, it's Menma..." Sakura said as she was about to check on him but stopped. The hallway was dark and the feeling of being watched seemed stronger from there.

Sucking it up, she went inside the dark hallway.

Meanwhile Naruto was in near tears, _'We were gonna kiss...!'_

Sakura picked up the baby, "Aw, what's wrong?"

Suddenly realizing, Sakura walked back to Naruto, "Hey, did you let him do the burp thing?"

"Um..." Naruto said confused, "You had to do that?"

Sakura sighed, "We're lucky I know something about babies or this little guy would be in pain..."

She placed the baby to rest on her chest, his head on her shoulder, and patted his little back.

After a while, it burped but somehow some formula came out of it's mouth, dirtying Sakura's shirt.

"Ah...!" Sakura frowned, "I hope this washes off...!"

Naruto grinned, "Ha ha!"

She glared at him, "Ha ha shut up, here you take him since you're so happy. I'm gonna change my shirt."

His eyes grew wide, "Wait, Sakura I was just kidding- wait! What if he dirties me, too?"

She ignored him as she stepped into her room with caution.

Naruto sighed as he sat down and looked at him, "You just had to cry..."

After a few seconds, Sakura came back faster than ever with her shirt put on a bit weird.

"Hey, are you sure you're alright?" Naruto asked her.

"Of course...!" Sakura gave him a smile, "Let's do something! What do you want to do?"

"Got a movie or something?" Naruto asked.

"Yeah, yeah I do." Sakura quickly said as she looked at her movie selection. But, unfortunately for her, most were all horror movies.

 _'Damn it! Ino and I gotta slow down on these...'_ Sakura thought.

"Whoa, you got that movie?" Naruto asked pointing to the scariest one she had.

"Let's see something less... Scary. I mean what about the baby?" Sakura made that up real quick, "Look! I have... Super Ponies... The movie..."

Naruto frowned a bit, "I never knew you liked those things..."

Sakura sweat-dropped, "Actually, it's Hinata's... She came by one day to show me this for, shit I forgot, but I guess she forgot it here."

"Um, I guess?" Naruto said as he sat down with the baby on his lap, sitting up as well.

Placing on the movie, Sakura then sat down next to him.

"Don't sit the baby like that...!" Sakura said as she grabbed it in her arms.

"Heh, heh, sorry about that..." He then casually placed his arm behind her, resting his hand on her shoulder.

 _ **"Ready Twinkle Toes!?"**_ the television yelled with the movie starting.

As the movie progressed it started from going to happy and silly to much darker.

"Um..." Sakura said, "I think I remember why she wanted to show me this..."

Naruto stared at the television wide eyed and then in disgust, "This was supposed to be a kids movie, right!? There are literal guts everywhere!"

 ** _"Nooo! Princess Strawberry!"_** A character yelled in the screen.

Sakura quickly got up and shut the television down. She turned around and nervously chuckled, "Well, that was interesting...!"

Meanwhile in jail...

"Tell us, Hinata Hyuuga... Where is the only copy of the dark version of Super Ponies!? The one that was created by this creepypasta guy!?" An Anbu said to Hinata, trying to get the information out.

Hinata held her baby close to her and frowned, "You'll never find it!"

* * *

"What time is it?" Sakura asked Naruto as she laid her head on his thighs, looking at him. The baby was asleep in Sakura's room.

"It's almost 11..." He simply said.

Sakura sat up and stretched her arms, "I think we should go to sleep now... I mean, if you wanna stay up and do whatever, go ahead, I'll be going to bed."

Naruto also sat up and said, "Hey, where am I going to sleep?"

Hesitating a bit, Sakura pointed to the hallway, "I've got a guest room... You can stay there... If you want."

Naruto nodded, "Ok... Goodnight then, Sakura."

He smiled at her and then headed off to his room.

Sakura sighed as she went to turn off the lights, suddenly having that feeling again.

She at first thought it was some enemy, but this feeling was different, very different.

Quickly heading towards her room, she shut the door. Changing into something more comfortable, Sakura finally went to her bed with the lights off.

She sat there for a minute and turned to face the baby. It laid still, not moving at all.

Suddenly remembering, Sakura got up ad turned on her lights.

"I think I have a big basket to serve as some crib..."

She searched in her closet and in no time, found an oval basket filled with colored plastic eggs.

Taking them out, Sakura then filled it up with an old soft pillow.

"Ok, maybe he can fit here?" Sakura asked, "I dot want to accidentally squish him..."

Grabbing Menma, she placed it in the basket, surprisingly fitting in.

"Ok!" She grinned placing it on her desk, "There, now you won't cry because I'm all on top of you by accident... And break you... Then I'm gonna owe Neji some money and I do not have the money now."

Turning off the lights once again, she slipped in her bed laying down. Looking at the ceiling, she took a slow deep breath.

She turned to her side and closed her eyes ignoring the weird feeling. Sakura couldn't sleep that well, she was afraid to open her eyes and find something staring at her.

 _'The only thing I can't punch the shit out of! Ghosts!'_ Sakura thought while sitting up with her eyes closed.

Slowly opening them, she saw nothing but the darkness of her room along with some moonlight.

"That's it." Sakura stood up and walked out her door to the next room.

Knocking loudly, Sakura waited impatiently for Naruto to open up.

After a couple of seconds, the door was opened to find Naruto standing there, "Huh? what's wrong, Sakura? Is it the baby?"

Hesitating a bit, Sakura then grabbed his arm, "Sleep in my room!"

His eyes grew wide, "Me? Are you sure?"

She frowned, "This is all you and Gaara's fault! Next time I'm staying real close by you two, so there is no more spirit talking shit!"

Naruto gave a nervous chuckle then he scratched the back of his head, "I um, I see. So, what you're trying to tell me is that, you are scared, right?"

Sakura blushed and turned her head while crossing her arms, "I'm just still creeped out, ok?"

"And you want me to protect you?"

She glared at him, "No! If something does come up, I throw you at it while I make a run for it. With the baby, 'cause I am not owing Neji money."

"Sakura~!" Naruto gave a fake hurt face.

She grinned, "Nah, I'll... I'll just feel a bit more at ease if someone is with me..."

"Alright. I guess I do owe it to you... Don't worry, I'll be right here..." He then gave a scared worried face, "Shit, Sakura! I'm scared as hell, too! I was about to ask you to come sleep over here or something! I've been faking to be brave this whole time!"

"You were?" Sakura's eyes grew wide, "So I'm not the only crazy one?"

He shook his head, "Come on, I'm getting creeped out!"

They both walked to her room and she shut the door.

"Hey... Do you feel that?" Asked Sakura.

"...No."

She grinned, "That feeling of being watched is gone."

Naruto nodded, "Guess it's cause we're together..."

She yawned a bit and sat on the right side of the bed while he sat on the left.

Stretching a bit, Sakura laid back while getting some cover.

She looked at him and gave a tired smile, "Sorry if I move a lot... That usually happens when I sleep..."

He laid next to her, "They know better..."

Sakura looked at him kind of weird, "Huh?"

"They know better..."

"Umm..?"

"They know better..!"

"Naruto, what are you-"

He looked at her and moved his arms, "No flex zone!"

Sakura sat up and stared at him with a blank face. After a while she threw a pillow at him, "Get out of my room."

Naruto dogged the pillow and laughed as she kept throwing some more.

"Hold up, Sakura, it was a joke!"

She laughed as she threw some more pillows and he dogded them.

"Sakura, you were supposed to say ** _hey_** every time I said the line!"

She squealed a bit as he now threw the pillows at her.

"Repeat after me, Sakura!" Naruto cried out as he continued to throw.

Sakura dodged some, but had one right in the face.

"That actually hit my eyeball!" Sakura gasped as her eye stung a bit. She grabbed the biggest pillow, "Now you're going to get it!"

Naruto laughed as he also got a pillow, "Alright!"

Just as they were about to have their mini fight, the baby started to cry loudly.

Sakura's eyes grew wide, "Damn it, I totally forgot about him!"

* * *

"So..." Deidara spoke to Kiba who was now feeding his fake baby.

"Yeah?" Kiba asked, now a victim to Deidara's lies. Or he was just too tired to care.

"Your little wife, girlfriend, whatever hasn't come back..."

"She's being asked about this movie she had.. Also we about to get bailed out by her cousin."

Deidara's eyes grew wide, "Hold up, what?"

Just then Neji came in with his baby on his back, "I'm here Hinata-sama!"

TenTen crossed her arms, "Ugh, Neji! Our kid's ears are going to explode!"

After a couple of minutes Hinata and Kiba were let go.

"I'll tell everyone of your innocence!" Hinata told Deidara.

"Seriously?" Deidara asked.

 _'Damn, she fell faster than anyone, yeah!'_ he thought, _'Could be useful...'_

He gave a fake cry of joy and hope, "Wow! Thank you so much! Maybe one day, I'll be freed and live a normal life."

* * *

Meanwhile miles away...

"Gai-sensei, please... Just please go to sleep?" Ino asked as she was out on watch.

"Ino!" Gai said loudly, "When you're young, you don't have time to sleep! Right, Lee?"

Lee nodded, "That's right, Gai-sensei!"

"Now!" Gai grinned at Lee, "Telling campfire stories while doing 5,000 situps! Ino, come join us!"

Ino sighed, "No thank you! Someone has to stay alert...!"

Lee shrugged, "Ok! If you say so."

Both started doing sit-ups while Gai began telling the tale when a handsome man with the same looks as himself... Was saving the world.

Ino stretched a bit, hoping that her little plan back at home was going well. She hoped Kiba and Hinata were doing their best to bring Sakura and Naruto together.

"Ino!" Gai yelled out, "Don't forget to get into character tomorrow! You were failing with being Lee's brother and my daughter!"

Ino crossed her arms, " _Gai-sensei_! I have bright pale blonde hair! You two have dark hair! I told you two to go with the act of being cousins..."

Lee continued doing his push ups, "So? This is an anime!"

* * *

"He won't shut up, Sakura..." Naruto gave fake tears as he laid down with the baby on top crying.

Sakura was also in fake tears as she laid next to him, "Maybe he'll be quiet soon..."

She sat up and rocked the baby in her arms, "Time to sleep, Menma... Come on, let's close our eyes now."

Naruto sat up, "What if it's too hot?"

Sakura nodded as she began to take the blanket around it. It was still crying though.

She tried to cool it down a bit more with her hand.

Naruto got up to one of Sakura's book shelves. He got a random book out, "Maybe he wants a story?"

"That's one of my medical books.."

He flipped through the pages, "So? It's got pictures in it."

They both sat down with the baby in the midde as Naruto held the book open.

She then began with the first thing showing was.. A Stomach

"This is called a stomach...!" Sakura said half excited, "It helps you digest food! Mm yummy food..!"

Surprisingly it started to quiet down. Naruto and Sakura looked at each other in surprised and went on slowly.

Flipping to the next pages, the next picture was of a heart.

"Aw look at this, Menma!" Naruto said pointing at the heart, "This thing helps you... Do something like... Pumping blood."

"And," Sakura went on, "It is one of the most important organs of your body!"

"Look at all the colors!" Naruto faked a gasp, "It's got blue, red, pink!? What a colorful heart..!"

Flipping some more, it showed the human figure but only in muscles.

"Oo!" Sakura started, now getting a bit into it, "That's what helps you lift things up!"

Naruto pointed to the next picture, which was the human skeleton, "That helps you stand up and not be all floppy, Menma! Isn't that cool? Or else you'd be like some octopus! Ok, that sounds delicious right now, some octopus."

Sakura continued, "Oh, look at the veins on the other one! Blue, red, styling on the inside! What?"

After a while, they had totally forgotten about the baby, because they were so into the book.

"This was my first medical book!" Sakura said, "All these bring back memories... Harsh memories."

Naruto laughed, then stopped, "Oh, shit, the baby!"

It had fallen asleep in between them.

Sakura gasped and grabbed it. After a while of examination, she looked at Naruto, "This baby... Looks a bit too real... What if it's some Orochimaru experiment?"

Naruto crossed his arms, "And how would Neji get a hold of it?"

Shaking her head, Sakura got up to put it away, "I'm just saying... Like you can tell it's fake, but at the same time..."

That creepy feeling of being watched came back, sending small chills down her arms and back.

Feeling as if she stayed standing up she would get attacked by something unknown, Sakura quickly walked back to bed.

Naruto looked at her oddly, "You still scared?"

Crossing her arms, Sakura sighed, "Once again, this is all your fault! I swear I am going to pour holy... Holy everything on this place and especially yours!"

Naruto laid down and gave a small sigh. He laid to his side watching Sakura, who gave a small yawn.

Sakura laid on her back, and then turned to face him. They were inches away from each other, observing one another's face.

A sudden feeling of calmness and relief washed over her as she watched him. She gave a small smile while slowly reaching out to touch his cheek.

She remembered fearing of losing him back in the mission. The image of him dead brought fear into her, she'd do anything to keep him alive, even if it cost her own life. Sakura was glad that he was right in front of her, feeling all normal.

"I..." She began slowly, "I'm just happy that you're here with me, Naruto."

He smiled at her as he went to hug her while whispering, "So am I."

She hugged him tighter as if that were the last time she'd see him. Burying her head on his neck, Sakura spoke, "I was so scared when I saw you covered in blood- I didn't act the same. If it wasn't for Deidara, you'd probably be gone... And I'd never forgive myself."

Naruto had a sad look on his face as he held her close, "Sakura... Don't ever risk your life Becuase of me... If something happened to you Becuase of me, I'd blame myself..."

It was quiet for a moment, until Sakura mumbled, "Dont ever scare me again like that... Or I'll... I'll.." She yawned a bit as she made herself comfortable with him while closing her eyes, "I'll kick your ass..."

He kissed the top of her head and whispered, "Sakura..."

There was no response but only soft breathing.

"I still love you."

* * *

 **I was sick in more ways than one and to top it off, my laptop was getting fixed. So boom. Lol, forgive any mistakes, I tried to make sure there weren't any. I wanted to post on Halloween, but that's where I got even more sick. I'm better now, and I hope you all had a great Halloween! And thank you all for supporting me! XX**


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